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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: march · cabinet · cold · patient · calf · spell · present · chest

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spell — magic
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cold — an illness
  10. present — there
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. spell — letters
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chest — a box
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. present — the time now
  22. present — a gift
  23. chest — of your body
  24. march — the month

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