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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: rock · chest · pop · mark · patient · lash · hand · game

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. game — wild animals
  5. chest — a box
  6. rock — a stone
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. pop — soda
  9. game — a match
  10. rock — music
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. hand — help
  17. pop — music
  18. mark — a trace
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pop — to visit
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. chest — of your body

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