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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: patient · hand · can · ground · cell · chest · tear · pass

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cell — in biology
  6. ground — the earth
  7. cell — a phone
  8. can — a tin
  9. ground — crushed
  10. hand — help
  11. chest — of your body
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. pass — a permit
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chest — a box
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. tear — from crying
  20. can — a tin
  21. ground — a position
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. can — to be able to

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