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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: patient · kid · calf · key · bay · ball · chest · pitcher

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — child
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. ball — a great time
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. kid — to tease
  18. key — in music
  19. ball — a dance
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. key — for a lock
  23. key — the most important part
  24. chest — a box

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