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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: stem · drill · dip · race · row · leaves · toast · fall

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. race — a contest
  4. drill — a practice
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. stem — to come from
  11. row — a line
  12. fall — to drop
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. row — to paddle
  15. drill — the tool
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. dip — to sink
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — the arms race
  21. drill — army training
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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