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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: pound · patient · file · present · arm · cabinet · rush · wound

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. wound — an injury
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pound — a weight
  7. rush — hurry
  8. wound — an injury
  9. file — a document
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. present — the time now
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. file — a tool
  19. present — a gift
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. arm — part of the body
  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