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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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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: wound · stand · mate · kick · deal · branch · trunk · club

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. club — for golf
  3. wound — an injury
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. club — for dancing
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. mate — to breed
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. mate — a partner
  11. mate — a friend
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. club — a group
  14. wound — an injury
  15. kick — in football
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. deal — to handle
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. stand — to bear
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. deal — a big deal

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