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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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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: spell · stand · wound · rest · lean · race · object · net

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — an injury
  3. object — an aim
  4. lean — to bend
  5. stand — to bear
  6. rest — a break
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. spell — letters
  9. net — after costs
  10. spell — a short time
  11. net — in sport
  12. race — a contest
  13. object — to protest
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. race — humankind
  16. net — for catching
  17. rest — what's left
  18. object — a thing
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. lean — thin
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. spell — magic
  23. race — the arms race
  24. rest — what's left

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