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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: sharp · pound · ball · rule · patient · pitch · chest · present

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. sharp — clever
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rule — a law
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. chest — of your body
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. present — a gift
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. pound — a weight
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pitch — completely
  15. ball — a dance
  16. chest — a box
  17. present — there
  18. ball — a great time
  19. present — the time now
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. ball — a round shape

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