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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: patient · mug · trunk · bound · bear · game · kid · cap

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. bound — obliged
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. mug — a cup
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. game — a match
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — certain
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. mug — a face
  16. bear — the animal
  17. mug — to rob
  18. kid — child
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bear — the animal
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. cap — a lid
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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