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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: fall · straw · bulb · race · mark · toast

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — a contest
  5. bulb — for light
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mark — a grade
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bulb — for light
  12. mark — a trace
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. fall — the season
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. race — the arms race
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bulb — of a plant

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