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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. race — humankind
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. race — a contest
  11. fall — the season
  12. wound — an injury
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. fall — to drop
  15. race — the arms race
  16. plane — a tool
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. rush — hurry
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. fall — to drop
  24. plane — in geometry

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