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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: chair · stem · mine · race · ruler · wind · row · key

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. race — a contest
  4. wind — moving air
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. key — in music
  8. row — to paddle
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. mine — for digging
  11. chair — a leader
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. key — for a lock
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. key — the most important part
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stem — to come from
  19. row — a line
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. race — humankind
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. chair — a professorship

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