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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · mug · net · rash · straw · game · race · pit

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. mug — a face
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. mug — a cup
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — for catching
  8. race — a contest
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rash — a series
  14. game — wild animals
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. race — humankind
  17. game — a match
  18. net — in sport
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. mug — to rob
  24. game — a kind of play

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