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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · hide · fine · jam · land · patient · fan · chest

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. chest — of your body
  5. land — to come down
  6. fine — high quality
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. fine — all right
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. land — a country
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chest — of your body
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. chest — a box

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