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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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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: sharp · band · squash · ground · race · fall · rule · bulb

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — the arms race
  4. squash — the sport
  5. fall — the season
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bulb — for light
  9. sharp — clever
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. race — a contest
  12. ground — crushed
  13. rule — government
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. squash — to crush
  18. ground — a position
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. rule — a law
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bulb — for light
  24. ground — the earth

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