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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: march · bank · patient · present · file · deal

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. file — a tool
  4. present — a gift
  5. bank — for money
  6. file — a line of people
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. present — there
  9. march — the month
  10. bank — for money
  11. deal — to handle
  12. march — music
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. present — the time now
  17. file — a document
  18. march — the month

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