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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: cold · pitcher · season · saw · mate · bank · patient · tube

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. season — of the year
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bank — for money
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. mate — to breed
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bank — of a river
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — a container
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mate — a friend
  23. saw — the tool
  24. tube — the underground

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