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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: tear · fan · stick · arm · chip · march · hand · patient

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. march — music
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. hand — in cards
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. chip — for betting
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. tear — from crying
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. hand — help
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. march — the month
  19. march — the month
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chip — to eat
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  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