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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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Word bank
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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: snap · row · rest · degree · race · stem

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. rest — what's left
  3. row — to paddle
  4. snap — to click
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — temperature
  7. race — the arms race
  8. degree — from a university
  9. row — a line
  10. race — humankind
  11. rest — what's left
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. rest — a break
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. stem — of a plant

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