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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: stem · tear · lie · chest · squash · key · wind · track

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. key — the most important part
  3. squash — to crush
  4. tear — to rip
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. track — a path
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. chest — a box
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. chest — of your body
  14. key — for a lock
  15. chest — of your body
  16. track — to keep track
  17. key — in music
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. lie — to recline
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. wind — moving air
  23. track — a song
  24. tear — from crying

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