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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stand — to bear
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pit — a hole
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. branch — a division
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mark — a grade
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. branch — of a bank

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