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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: lean · hand · game · bass · cap · patient · bear · present

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. hand — in cards
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cap — a lid
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bear — the animal
  8. present — there
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. hand — help
  11. bear — the animal
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a hat
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to bend
  17. present — a gift
  18. game — a match
  19. bass — low music
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bass — the fish
  22. present — the time now
  23. game — wild animals
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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