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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: leaves · deal · chest · rule · patient · hide

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. rule — a law
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. rule — government
  11. chest — a box
  12. chest — of your body
  13. deal — to handle
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chest — of your body

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