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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 · race · swing · deal · rock · ball · racket · stem

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. ball — a great time
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. race — humankind
  7. swing — to play on
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. deal — to handle
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. chest — of your body
  12. race — a contest
  13. chest — a box
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. rock — a stone
  16. chest — of your body
  17. ball — a dance
  18. stem — to come from
  19. swing — in golf
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. swing — music
  23. race — the arms race
  24. deal — a big deal

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