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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: last · bore · wind · toast · stem · race

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. bore — to drill
  5. race — humankind
  6. race — a contest
  7. wind — moving air
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. toast — bread
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. bore — to tire
  16. wind — moving air
  17. last — finally
  18. race — the arms race

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