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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 · rush · board · staff · date · deal · cold · spring

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. board — to get on
  3. deal — to handle
  4. date — the fruit
  5. spring — the season
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. board — a committee
  9. cold — an illness
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. spring — a coil
  15. staff — employees
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rush — hurry
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. cold — not warm
  20. staff — a stick
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. spring — of water
  23. staff — employees
  24. date — on the calendar

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