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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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bass — the fish
  6. season — of the year
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rash — a series
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. race — a contest
  11. wax — to grow
  12. chest — a box
  13. race — humankind
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. race — the arms race
  18. season — in sport
  19. bass — low music
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rash — hasty
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wax — in the ear

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