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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: land · board · patient · fan · bank · cold · last · deal

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. last — finally
  5. land — a country
  6. deal — to handle
  7. bank — for money
  8. board — to get on
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bank — for money
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. last — final
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. land — ground
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. board — a committee
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. cold — an illness
  20. last — to go on
  21. bank — of a river
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. land — to come down
  24. cold — not warm

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