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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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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: rule · race · lean · bat · rash · kick · patient · bay

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. lean — to bend
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. race — humankind
  6. kick — in football
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. bat — the animal
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. lean — thin
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. rule — government
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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