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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tear — from crying
  7. field — for sport
  8. bank — for money
  9. mine — for digging
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bank — of a river
  13. field — farmland
  14. tear — to rip
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stem — to come from
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bank — for money
  23. stand — to bear
  24. field — a subject

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