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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. capital — money
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. race — a contest
  5. stand — to bear
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. race — the arms race
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. race — humankind
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — the cause
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. capital — a city
  18. clip — to cut
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. stem — a stem cell

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