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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: mate · cold · cabinet · stock · patient · bank · temple · file

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  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. cold — an illness
  2. file — a tool
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. bank — of a river
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. mate — a friend
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. stock — goods
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a line of people
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bank — for money
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. stock — shares
  23. bank — for money
  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