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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: hand · straw · cabinet · hide · patient · pound · bore · chair

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bore — to tire
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bore — to drill
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. hand — help
  13. pound — a weight
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. hand — in cards
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. pound — to hit hard

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