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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: bear · patient · snap · race · cabinet · tear

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. race — a contest
  3. bear — the animal
  4. tear — from crying
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. snap — to click
  10. tear — from crying
  11. race — humankind
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. race — the arms race
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to speak sharply

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