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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. track — to keep track
  3. spell — a short time
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. band — a music group
  7. spell — letters
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. cap — of ice
  10. track — a path
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. cap — a hat
  19. track — a song
  20. race — a contest
  21. band — a ring
  22. cap — a lid
  23. spell — magic
  24. arm — part of the body

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