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

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. march — the month
  5. spring — the season
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. cue — for pool
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — a coil
  13. race — humankind
  14. march — the month
  15. cue — a hint
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. stem — to come from
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cue — a signal
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. sharp — clever
  23. march — music
  24. race — a contest

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