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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 · lash · patient · deal · shower · leaves · row · last

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. last — final
  4. race — the arms race
  5. deal — to handle
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. last — to go on
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. row — to paddle
  12. shower — rain
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. row — a line
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. race — a contest
  22. shower — to wash
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. last — finally

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