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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: patient · race · present · mate · rock · bark

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — there
  4. bark — to shout
  5. rock — a stone
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rock — music
  8. mate — to breed
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mate — a friend
  11. race — humankind
  12. mate — a partner
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. race — a contest
  17. present — the time now
  18. bark — of a tree

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