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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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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: hand · scale · game · foot · content · bass · stem · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. hand — help
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stem — to come from
  5. scale — in music
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. game — a match
  9. bass — low music
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. scale — size or range
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bass — the fish
  14. race — humankind
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. content — the amount
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. content — happy
  21. race — a contest
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. foot — a measure

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