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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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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: bank · bowl · saw · shower · cap · mine · patient · cell

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. saw — the tool
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bank — for money
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. shower — rain
  15. cap — of ice
  16. mine — for digging
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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