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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: bulb · fall · race · stand · chest · swing

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. swing — to play on
  4. chest — of your body
  5. swing — music
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. bulb — for light
  9. stand — to bear
  10. swing — in golf
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. chest — a box
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bulb — for light
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. chest — of your body

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