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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: race · mate · wound · pass · rush · tear · chair · root

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mate — to breed
  5. race — humankind
  6. chair — a leader
  7. tear — from crying
  8. root — the cause
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — a friend
  13. root — of a plant
  14. race — the arms race
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. root — of a word
  18. race — a contest
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pass — a permit
  21. wound — an injury
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rush — hurry
  24. rush — a thrill

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