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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 120 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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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 · stick · coach · deal · cold · present

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. present — a gift
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. present — there
  5. deal — to handle
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cold — not warm
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. present — the time now
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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