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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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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: patient · present · cap · pitch · lean · land · chest · bound

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. present — there
  3. bound — tied together
  4. bound — obliged
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — a box
  7. present — the time now
  8. pitch — completely
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — thin
  11. bound — certain
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. land — ground
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — a lid
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. chest — of your body
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. present — a gift
  21. cap — of ice
  22. land — a country
  23. chest — of your body
  24. land — to come down

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