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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. band — a music group
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — a friend
  5. object — a thing
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. mate — a partner
  8. race — humankind
  9. stem — to come from
  10. scale — in music
  11. band — a ring
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bulb — for light
  14. object — to protest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. scale — size or range
  17. object — an aim
  18. race — a contest
  19. bulb — for light
  20. wound — an injury
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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