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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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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: perch · patient · kid · bowl · race · bear

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — to tease
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. kid — child
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. race — humankind
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. bear — the animal
  14. perch — the fish
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. race — the arms race
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. race — a contest

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