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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: safe · hand · rush · chest · wound · branch · jam · content

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wound — an injury
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — a division
  6. content — happy
  7. chest — a box
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. content — the amount
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rush — hurry
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. hand — in cards
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. wound — an injury
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com