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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. race — a contest
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. squash — the sport
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — crushed
  9. race — the arms race
  10. current — happening now
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. kid — child
  13. row — a line
  14. kid — to tease
  15. row — to paddle
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. ground — a position
  18. stem — to come from
  19. squash — to crush
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. race — humankind
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. current — of water
  24. current — electric

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