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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 116 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 · pitch · plane · content · saw · bank · patient · track

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. saw — the tool
  3. track — a song
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. track — to keep track
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. content — happy
  11. track — a path
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. last — to go on
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bank — for money
  19. content — the amount
  20. last — finally
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. saw — the tool
  24. pitch — completely

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