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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: leaves · patient · trunk · fan · chest · rush · staff · bat

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rush — hurry
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. chest — of your body
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bat — the animal
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. staff — employees
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. chest — a box
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. chest — of your 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