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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 · chip · patient · spring · mark · key · wave · row

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. row — a line
  4. key — in music
  5. key — for a lock
  6. race — humankind
  7. mark — a grade
  8. chip — for betting
  9. race — the arms race
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. spring — a coil
  13. chip — to eat
  14. mark — a trace
  15. race — a contest
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. row — to paddle
  20. spring — of water
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. spring — the season
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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