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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: kick · lash · content · patient · hide · race

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. content — happy
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. content — the amount
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. race — the arms race
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. race — a contest
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. kick — in football

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