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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: suit · chair · patient · bowl · bulb · trunk · foot · bat

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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. trunk — of a car
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. suit — clothes
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. suit — in cards
  12. suit — to fit
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. chair — to sit on

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