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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: kid · deal · bear · rash · chair · stick · patient · game

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. bear — the animal
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. game — a match
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. kid — child
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. rash — a series
  16. kid — to tease
  17. game — wild animals
  18. rash — hasty
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. bear — the animal
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. deal — to handle

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