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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. net — in sport
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. pitch — completely
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. net — for catching
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. cell — a phone
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. race — the arms race
  17. stem — to come from
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a match
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. net — after costs
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. race — a contest

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