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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 120 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: last · bore · patient · race · file · season · bank · lean

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. file — a tool
  4. race — the arms race
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. lean — to bend
  7. file — a line of people
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bore — to drill
  12. last — final
  13. last — to go on
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bank — of a river
  16. race — humankind
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. file — a document
  19. lean — thin
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — for money
  22. race — a contest
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. last — finally

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