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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 120 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. race — humankind
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. pit — in a race
  5. race — the arms race
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. net — after costs
  8. stem — to come from
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. row — to paddle
  17. race — a contest
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. net — in sport
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. cap — a hat
  23. row — a line
  24. pit — a hole

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