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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: rock · kid · patient · last · present · rule · roll · game

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. kid — child
  3. rock — music
  4. game — wild animals
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. last — finally
  7. present — the time now
  8. rule — a law
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. last — final
  11. present — a gift
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. last — to go on
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. present — there
  19. roll — a cake
  20. game — a match
  21. rule — government
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. rock — a stone

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