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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 116 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: hide · race · stick · pitcher · tear · mark · patient · degree

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. race — a contest
  4. tear — to rip
  5. mark — a grade
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. degree — from a university
  10. race — humankind
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. race — the arms race
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. degree — an amount
  20. tear — from crying
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mark — a trace

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