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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: band · cap · vault · stand · branch · wound · bear · rush

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. vault — a safe
  3. branch — a division
  4. band — a ring
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. bear — the animal
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bear — the animal
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. cap — a hat
  13. stand — to bear
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. cap — a lid
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. wound — an injury
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cap — of ice
  24. branch — of a tree

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