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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: race · wound · row · bark · patient · bass · chest · staff

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  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. race — the arms race
  2. row — a line
  3. staff — employees
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wound — an injury
  9. staff — a stick
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. chest — of your body
  16. race — humankind
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. chest — a box
  20. bass — low music
  21. staff — employees
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. row — to paddle
  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