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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 120 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: land · cell · spell · patient · bank · race · band · kick

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — humankind
  4. bank — of a river
  5. race — the arms race
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. kick — in football
  10. land — to come down
  11. spell — magic
  12. land — a country
  13. spell — a short time
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spell — letters
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bank — for money
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. band — a ring
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. land — ground
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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