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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: staff · patient · rock · deal · race · wake · drill · cell

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. race — the arms race
  3. staff — employees
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. race — a contest
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wake — a trail
  9. drill — a practice
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. drill — army training
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. rock — a stone
  14. cell — a phone
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cell — in biology
  19. race — humankind
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. staff — employees

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