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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 120 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: rule · calf · chest · season · pound · patient

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. season — of the year
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. season — in sport
  7. chest — a box
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. rule — a law
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rule — government

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