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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: last · bank · pit · patient · shower · band · date · trunk

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. date — the fruit
  3. last — final
  4. pit — a hole
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. shower — rain
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a ring
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. last — to go on
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. band — a music group
  19. bank — for money
  20. shower — to wash
  21. bank — for money
  22. pit — in a race
  23. last — finally
  24. bank — of a river

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