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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: race · cold · racket · cue · mark · board · patient · kick

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. board — to get on
  3. race — a contest
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cue — a hint
  8. race — humankind
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. cold — not warm
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. board — a committee
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cue — for pool
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — in football
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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