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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: race · march · present · trunk · patient · wind · date · snap

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. snap — to click
  3. race — a contest
  4. present — there
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. race — the arms race
  7. present — the time now
  8. race — humankind
  9. date — the fruit
  10. present — a gift
  11. march — the month
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wind — moving air
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wind — moving air
  24. trunk — of a car

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