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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: wind · pit · patient · bound · kid · stand · rush · content

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. kid — to tease
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wind — moving air
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. kid — child
  13. content — the amount
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. content — happy
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. pit — in a race
  18. stand — to bear
  19. bound — certain
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. pit — a hole
  22. rush — hurry
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. bound — tied together

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