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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 116 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: tear · mate · pop · bowl · cold · patient · season · last

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pop — soda
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. season — in sport
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mate — a partner
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mate — a friend
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. pop — music
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. last — to go on
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. last — finally
  22. season — of the year
  23. last — final
  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