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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 · rock · row · hide · hand · band · rule · chest

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. rule — a law
  5. band — a music group
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. chest — of your body
  9. row — to paddle
  10. rule — government
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chest — of your body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. chest — a box
  16. hand — in cards
  17. rock — music
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. hand — help
  20. rock — a stone
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. row — a line
  24. rule — to rule out

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