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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: race · current · hand · patient · racket · straw · rule · capital

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. capital — a city
  4. race — humankind
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. rule — government
  8. hand — help
  9. current — happening now
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. hand — in cards
  12. current — electric
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. race — a contest
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. current — of water
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rule — a law
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. hand — part of the 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