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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. bat — the animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. last — finally
  8. last — final
  9. last — to go on
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. pop — to visit
  17. stem — to come from
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — music
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. roll — a list

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