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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 116 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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. race — a contest
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. degree — temperature
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. spell — magic
  12. stem — to come from
  13. race — the arms race
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. degree — an amount
  16. stock — shares
  17. wax — to grow
  18. row — to paddle
  19. stock — goods
  20. race — humankind
  21. spell — letters
  22. row — a line
  23. spell — a short time
  24. stock — a soup base

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