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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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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: race · bound · present · pitcher · patient · nail · season · cold

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. present — the time now
  3. race — the arms race
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cold — not warm
  7. present — a gift
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. bound — certain
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. season — of the year
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bound — obliged
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. season — in sport
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bound — tied together
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. race — humankind
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. present — there
  24. race — a contest

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