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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 · craft · bowl · hand · rule · patient · chair · pit

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rule — government
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. race — humankind
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. hand — in cards
  14. chair — a leader
  15. race — a contest
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. race — the arms race
  19. rule — a law
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. craft — a skill
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. pit — in a race

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