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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. cold — not warm
  3. stem — to come from
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. toast — bread
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. race — a contest
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rush — hurry
  15. race — the arms race
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. suit — clothes
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. race — humankind
  22. suit — in cards
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. cold — an illness

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