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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 · stand · hand · last · face · arm · cell · racket

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. last — to go on
  7. cell — in biology
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. cell — a phone
  11. hand — help
  12. stand — to bear
  13. face — to confront
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. face — to point toward
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. hand — in cards
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. last — final
  23. last — finally
  24. arm — part of the 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