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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 · clip · patient · roll · tube · cold · charge · bank

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — for money
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — final
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. clip — for paper
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. last — finally
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cold — not warm
  14. charge — in control
  15. clip — to cut
  16. tube — a container
  17. charge — a price
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. roll — a list
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. charge — electricity
  22. roll — a cake
  23. tube — the underground
  24. clip — a video

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