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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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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 · foot · suit · present · content · patient · club · land

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. present — a gift
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. club — for dancing
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. content — happy
  11. suit — in cards
  12. suit — to fit
  13. land — a country
  14. present — there
  15. content — the amount
  16. wind — moving air
  17. club — a group
  18. foot — a measure
  19. present — the time now
  20. club — for golf
  21. land — ground
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. land — to come down
  24. suit — clothes

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