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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
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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: chair · hide · bass · squash · patient · mine · leaves · cell

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  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. chair — a leader
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bass — the fish
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bass — low music
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. cell — in biology
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. squash — the sport
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cell — a phone
  23. leaves — to go away
  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