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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 · patient · clip · season · hand · rest · ruler

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. bank — for money
  2. bank — of a river
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. last — final
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. season — in sport
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. season — of the year
  9. bank — for money
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. clip — to cut
  14. rest — a break
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. clip — a video
  17. hand — in cards
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. last — to go on
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. hand — help
  22. clip — for paper
  23. last — finally
  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