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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: cell · temple · tube · chair · wind · rest · patient · pound

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. rest — a break
  3. cell — a phone
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. tube — a container
  6. pound — a weight
  7. wind — moving air
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rest — what's left
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. chair — a leader
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. rest — what's left

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