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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: patient · tube · board · fall · spring · row · race · wax

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — humankind
  3. fall — the season
  4. tube — a container
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. race — the arms race
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. spring — the season
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. row — to paddle
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. fall — to drop
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. tube — the underground
  17. board — to get on
  18. spring — of water
  19. board — a committee
  20. spring — a coil
  21. row — a line
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. wax — to grow

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