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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: ground · march · fall · kick · wave · stem · can · race

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. can — to be able to
  3. stem — to come from
  4. race — the arms race
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. ground — a position
  7. fall — to drop
  8. can — a tin
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. ground — the earth
  11. fall — the season
  12. march — the month
  13. kick — in football
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. can — a tin
  21. race — humankind
  22. march — music
  23. race — a contest
  24. march — the month

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