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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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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 · chest · last · stand · lie · stick · wave · patient

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. last — final
  3. last — finally
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hand — help
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. chest — a box
  16. last — to go on
  17. hand — in cards
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. lie — to recline
  20. chest — of your body
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stand — to bear

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