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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: lie · squash · race · net · patient · chest · pound · sharp

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. pound — a weight
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. chest — a box
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. chest — of your body
  8. net — for catching
  9. race — humankind
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. race — the arms race
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. lie — to recline
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. sharp — clever
  21. squash — the sport
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. race — a contest
  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