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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 120 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: bore · rock · game · wound · staff · can · chair · patient

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. can — to be able to
  5. rock — music
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. staff — a stick
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wound — an injury
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. game — a match
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bore — to tire
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — employees
  22. game — wild animals
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wound — an injury

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