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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · pit · rule · chest · patient · season · squash · rash

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  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. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rule — a law
  4. pit — a hole
  5. land — ground
  6. rash — a series
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pit — in a race
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. season — in sport
  18. squash — the sport
  19. rule — government
  20. squash — to crush
  21. land — a country
  22. chest — of your body
  23. land — to come down
  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