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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: patient · lean · chest · roll · stem · wind · rash · hide

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. roll — a cake
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. roll — a list
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. stem — to come from
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. lean — thin
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. chest — a box
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. lean — to bend
  21. chest — of your body
  22. rash — hasty
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chest — of your body

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