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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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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 · cold · safe · mate · race · patient

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cold — an illness
  7. race — the arms race
  8. kick — in football
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — humankind
  15. mate — a partner
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. cold — not warm

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