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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: chip · bulb · land · face · hand · staff · pitcher · patient

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. staff — a stick
  3. land — ground
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. hand — in cards
  6. staff — employees
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. staff — employees
  9. land — to come down
  10. hand — help
  11. face — to confront
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. face — part of the head
  14. chip — to eat
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. land — a country
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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