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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 · snap · pitcher · row · band · race · foot · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. race — a contest
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. band — a ring
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. row — to paddle
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. foot — a measure
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. bulb — for light
  14. race — the arms race
  15. band — a music group
  16. race — humankind
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. cell — in biology
  21. row — a line
  22. bulb — for light
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. snap — to click

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