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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — the arms race
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. shower — rain
  7. tube — the underground
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. snap — to click
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. deal — to handle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. race — a contest
  24. tube — a container

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