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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 · key · court · nail · fan · race · march · ground

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. key — the most important part
  5. key — in music
  6. court — for sport
  7. ground — the earth
  8. race — the arms race
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. march — the month
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. race — a contest
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. ground — crushed
  16. court — of a king
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. ground — a position
  20. race — humankind
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. court — of law
  23. key — for a lock
  24. nail — for a hammer

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