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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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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 · chest · rule · swing · patient · trunk

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rule — a law
  4. swing — in golf
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. chest — of your body
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. tear — from crying
  11. chest — a box
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rule — government
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. tear — to rip
  18. patient — a sick person

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