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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. charge — in control
  5. capital — a city
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. race — humankind
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. last — final
  13. race — a contest
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. charge — electricity
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. bat — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. charge — a price
  22. last — to go on
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. last — finally

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