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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. mug — a face
  3. stem — to come from
  4. clip — for paper
  5. scale — in music
  6. race — humankind
  7. mug — a cup
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. race — a contest
  10. field — for sport
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. mug — to rob
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. field — a subject
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. scale — size or range
  20. clip — a video
  21. field — farmland
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. clip — to cut
  24. scale — for weighing

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