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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: craft · ground · chest · patient · bowl · ruler

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. chest — of your body
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ground — a position
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ground — crushed
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. craft — boats
  18. chest — a box

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