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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: patient · present · chest · content · degree · pit

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. degree — an amount
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. present — the time now
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. degree — temperature
  7. chest — of your body
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — the amount
  10. present — there
  11. chest — of your body
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. content — happy
  14. present — a gift
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pit — a hole
  18. degree — from a university

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