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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · cold · bear · band · track · net · cap · pitcher

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. band — a music group
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. net — after costs
  5. track — to keep track
  6. track — a song
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. cold — an illness
  11. track — a path
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. cap — a lid
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. bear — the animal
  20. net — in sport
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. band — a ring
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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