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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: cold · ground · pound · patient · temple · bore · rock · chair

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. bore — to drill
  4. cold — an illness
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bore — to tire
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chair — a leader
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rock — music
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. cold — not warm

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