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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: race · bulb · bound · lean · snap · ball · degree · cap

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. 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. race — humankind
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bulb — for light
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bound — certain
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ball — a dance
  11. degree — from a university
  12. cap — of ice
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bound — tied together
  15. lean — thin
  16. snap — to click
  17. lean — to bend
  18. race — a contest
  19. degree — temperature
  20. cap — a hat
  21. race — the arms race
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. bulb — for light
  24. 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