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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: stem · content · rest · staff · ground · race · wound · bound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. rest — what's left
  3. staff — employees
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. bound — obliged
  6. ground — a position
  7. rest — a break
  8. race — humankind
  9. stem — to come from
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ground — the earth
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. race — a contest
  14. staff — employees
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. ground — crushed
  18. race — the arms race
  19. content — the amount
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bound — tied together
  22. content — happy
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. staff — a stick

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