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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: patient · fall · hand · can · mark · chest · wake · race

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. wake — a trail
  3. race — humankind
  4. fall — to drop
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — a contest
  7. fall — the season
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mark — a trace
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. hand — help
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. fall — to drop
  15. hand — in cards
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. can — to be able to
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. chest — a box
  22. can — a tin
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. chest — of your body

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