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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 120 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: scale · patient · pitcher · rush · race · mouse · present · mine

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. race — the arms race
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. present — a gift
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mine — for digging
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. race — humankind
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. scale — in music
  15. present — there
  16. rush — hurry
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. present — the time now
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. scale — size or range
  21. race — a contest
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mine — an explosive

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