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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: present · pitcher · bank · hide · cold · patient · pass · straw

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. pass — a permit
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. present — the time now
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bank — for money
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. cold — an illness
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. present — a gift
  18. present — there
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bank — for money
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pass — to spend time

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