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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. stem — to come from
  3. race — a contest
  4. net — after costs
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. row — to paddle
  8. roll — a cake
  9. pop — to visit
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. row — a line
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. pop — music
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. net — in sport
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. race — humankind
  18. pop — soda
  19. craft — a skill
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. craft — boats
  22. roll — a list
  23. snap — to click
  24. race — the arms race

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