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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: ground · stick · race · tear · stem · cue · chest · mine

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chest — a box
  3. cue — a hint
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mine — for digging
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stem — to come from
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. race — the arms race
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ground — the earth
  12. cue — a signal
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. ground — crushed
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ground — a position
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. race — a contest
  22. cue — for pool
  23. tear — to rip
  24. race — humankind

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