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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: chest · stem · plane · capital · race · foot

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. capital — money
  4. stem — to come from
  5. chest — of your body
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. plane — a tool
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. capital — a city
  13. chest — a box
  14. race — humankind
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. chest — of your body
  17. foot — a measure
  18. foot — the bottom

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