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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: chip · stand · hand · cell · land · tear · pass · patient

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. cell — in biology
  3. hand — in cards
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. stand — to bear
  6. chip — to eat
  7. tear — from crying
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cell — a phone
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. land — a country
  13. land — to come down
  14. land — ground
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. hand — help
  20. pass — a permit
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. chip — for betting
  24. tear — to rip

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