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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: stand · chair · race · swing · racket · bound

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. swing — to play on
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. swing — music
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. race — a contest
  9. swing — in golf
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bound — obliged
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. race — the arms race
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — tied together
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — on your feet

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