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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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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: kid · chest · cell · coach · shower · lean · pass · patient

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. pass — a permit
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. kid — to tease
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chest — of your body
  15. lean — thin
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — rain
  19. lean — to bend
  20. kid — child
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. cell — a phone
  23. chest — a box
  24. patient — a sick person

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