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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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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: spring · toast · bark · rest · patient · race · content · pitch

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. toast — bread
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. content — the amount
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. rest — what's left
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. race — the arms race
  12. rest — what's left
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. rest — a break
  16. race — a contest
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. spring — of water
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. content — happy
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. race — humankind

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