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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. race — humankind
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. spell — a short time
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. press — to push
  14. press — newspapers
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. press — a publisher
  18. spell — letters
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. face — to point toward
  23. race — a contest
  24. spell — magic

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