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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. race — the arms race
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. race — humankind
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. deal — to handle
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. cell — a phone
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. shower — to wash
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. race — a contest
  19. stem — to come from
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. sharp — clever
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. shower — rain
  24. cell — in a prison

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