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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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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: patient · shower · can · mark · hand · chest · deal · branch

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. can — to be able to
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. shower — to wash
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mark — a grade
  12. hand — help
  13. branch — a division
  14. shower — rain
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. can — a tin
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. deal — to handle
  20. mark — a trace
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. can — a tin
  23. chest — a box
  24. branch — of a bank

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