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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: file · drill · patient · stem · staff · cold · bear · pass

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pass — a permit
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — a practice
  10. file — a document
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. file — a tool
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. staff — employees
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. drill — army training
  19. staff — employees
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. staff — a stick
  24. bear — the animal

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