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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. content — the amount
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. court — for sport
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. stem — to come from
  11. row — to paddle
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. court — of law
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. content — happy
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. pitch — completely
  19. race — humankind
  20. rush — hurry
  21. race — the arms race
  22. court — of a king
  23. row — a line
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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