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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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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: firm · plane · chest · field · patient · bore · chair · wind

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chair — a leader
  5. firm — steady
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. firm — a company
  8. wind — moving air
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bore — to tire
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. chest — of your body
  17. field — for sport
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. firm — decided
  21. field — farmland
  22. chest — of your body
  23. field — a subject
  24. chair — to sit on

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