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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: tear · perch · race · court · patient · land · shower · bank

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. court — of law
  4. bank — of a river
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. land — a country
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — humankind
  10. land — ground
  11. tear — to rip
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bank — for money
  15. perch — the fish
  16. court — for sport
  17. shower — rain
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. race — a contest
  20. bank — for money
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. land — to come down
  23. court — of a king
  24. race — the arms race

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