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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 120 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: wound · race · cell · stock · bank · object · rest · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wound — an injury
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. spell — magic
  6. race — the arms race
  7. object — to protest
  8. stock — shares
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wound — an injury
  11. rest — what's left
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. object — an aim
  14. bank — of a river
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rest — a break
  18. cell — in biology
  19. spell — letters
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bank — for money
  22. stock — goods
  23. object — a thing
  24. bank — for money

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