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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a document
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — rain
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — a contest
  20. shower — to wash
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. wound — an injury
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. race — the arms race

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