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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: content · chip · stand · rule · arm · clip · court · patient

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. court — for sport
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. chip — for betting
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chip — to eat
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. rule — government
  10. clip — a video
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. rule — a law
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. stand — to bear
  19. court — of law
  20. clip — to cut
  21. court — of a king
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. content — happy
  24. content — the amount

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