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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: patient · fall · cold · pitch · hand · bank · track · date

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cold — an illness
  5. fall — to drop
  6. pitch — completely
  7. track — a song
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. bank — for money
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. track — to keep track
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. fall — the season
  14. bank — for money
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. date — the fruit
  19. track — a path
  20. hand — in cards
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. fall — to drop
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hand — help

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