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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: wax · nail · patient · pit · stem · race · game · bat

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. pit — a hole
  5. race — the arms race
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pit — in a race
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. game — a match
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. race — humankind
  17. game — wild animals
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. race — a contest
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. nail — for a hammer

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