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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wind · board · wound · branch · bound · fan · vault · mine

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. board — a committee
  8. bound — obliged
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — a division
  12. wind — moving air
  13. board — to get on
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bound — certain
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bound — tied together
  21. vault — a safe
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. mine — for digging

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