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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: patient · shower · rush · pitcher · march · branch · face · bay

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. face — to confront
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. face — to point toward
  7. march — the month
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. face — part of the head
  13. march — music
  14. shower — to wash
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. branch — a division
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. march — the month
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — hurry
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. shower — rain

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