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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: wind · patient · hide · cell · pop · kick

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pop — music
  6. kick — in football
  7. wind — moving air
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wind — moving air
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — to visit
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. kick — a thrill

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