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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 · bat · bear · chair · racket · content · stick · deal

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. content — the amount
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. chair — a leader
  11. content — happy
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bear — the animal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bear — the animal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bat — the animal

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