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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: cold · patient · stand · pitch · hand · pop · rash · bound

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bound — certain
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pop — soda
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. pop — music
  14. hand — help
  15. rash — hasty
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bound — obliged
  18. pitch — completely
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bound — tied together
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. pop — to visit

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