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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: rest · field · roll · cell · race · ruler · stem · last

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. last — final
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rest — what's left
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — the arms race
  9. cell — in biology
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. rest — a break
  12. stem — to come from
  13. roll — a cake
  14. field — a subject
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. last — finally
  20. rest — what's left
  21. roll — a list
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. race — a contest
  24. ruler — for measuring

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