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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. band — a ring
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — to recline
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. race — humankind
  7. snap — to click
  8. game — a match
  9. race — the arms race
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. band — a music group
  14. race — a contest
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stem — to come from
  23. game — wild animals
  24. racket — for tennis

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