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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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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: racket · wave · patient · fall · spring · race

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. race — a contest
  3. spring — the season
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. spring — a coil
  6. fall — the season
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. race — the arms race
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. spring — of water
  18. race — humankind

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