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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: branch · wound · cold · date · patient · net · sharp · stand

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. wound — an injury
  3. net — in sport
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. branch — a division
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. net — after costs
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. net — for catching
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. wound — an injury
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stand — to bear
  19. cold — not warm
  20. sharp — clever
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. date — the fruit
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. sharp — exactly

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