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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 120 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: bound · cell · patient · rock · pass · chair · chest · mine

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. chest — a box
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cell — a phone
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bound — tied together
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rock — music
  14. cell — in biology
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rock — a stone
  19. chair — a leader
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pass — a permit
  22. bound — obliged
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. mine — an explosive

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