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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: mate · patient · march · cap · mug · cold · bass · tear

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — a lid
  4. mug — to rob
  5. cap — of ice
  6. march — music
  7. mug — a face
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. mug — a cup
  11. mate — a friend
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cold — not warm
  15. march — the month
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mate — to breed
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bass — low music
  21. mate — a partner
  22. tear — from crying
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. march — the month

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