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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: key · row · rush · race · kick · wake · last · patient

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. rush — hurry
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. row — a line
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. last — final
  8. key — for a lock
  9. last — finally
  10. race — humankind
  11. kick — in football
  12. wake — a trail
  13. race — the arms race
  14. key — in music
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. key — the most important part
  19. last — to go on
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. race — a contest

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