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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. key — in music
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. key — for a lock
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. spring — the season
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. spring — a coil
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — humankind
  18. dip — to sink
  19. stand — to bear
  20. spring — of water
  21. stem — to come from
  22. race — the arms race
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. key — the most important part

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