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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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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: game · fine · pop · perch · race · land · sharp · patient

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. sharp — clever
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. fine — all right
  5. pop — soda
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. perch — the fish
  8. land — a country
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. game — a match
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. land — to come down
  14. race — humankind
  15. fine — high quality
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. land — ground
  19. race — a contest
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — music
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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