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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: patient · cue · row · wound · fall · wake · race · board

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wound — an injury
  4. row — a line
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. fall — the season
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. board — to get on
  9. race — a contest
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. cue — a hint
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — the arms race
  18. fall — to drop
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. cue — for pool
  21. wake — a trail
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. board — a committee

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