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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. stem — to come from
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. race — a contest
  7. scale — size or range
  8. race — humankind
  9. fall — to drop
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. scale — in music
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. rash — a series
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. kid — child
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. kid — to tease
  21. race — the arms race
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fall — the season

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