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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: land · patient · hide · court · pitcher · staff · foot · cabinet

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. staff — employees
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. land — a country
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. land — to come down
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. court — of a king
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. staff — employees
  15. foot — a measure
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. land — ground
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. court — of law
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. staff — a stick

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