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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: tear · snap · ground · race · patient · season · bound · toast

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. race — a contest
  3. tear — to rip
  4. season — in sport
  5. race — humankind
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. ground — the earth
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. toast — bread
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bound — tied together
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. tear — from crying
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. season — of the year
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. snap — to click
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. bound — obliged
  23. race — the arms race
  24. bound — certain

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