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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: arm · chair · band · fall · stem · race

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. fall — the season
  5. race — humankind
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. chair — a leader
  8. race — the arms race
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. race — a contest
  18. stem — to come from

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