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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: race · straw · chest · lash · staff · stem

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. chest — of your body
  6. staff — a stick
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. race — a contest
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stem — to come from
  13. race — the arms race
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. staff — employees
  16. chest — a box
  17. race — humankind
  18. straw — dry grass

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