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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. lie — to recline
  3. stock — goods
  4. stem — to come from
  5. scale — size or range
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. scale — in music
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — crushed
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. land — a country
  17. race — the arms race
  18. land — ground
  19. rash — a series
  20. race — humankind
  21. stock — shares
  22. land — to come down
  23. race — a contest
  24. ground — a position

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