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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 120 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 · race · fall · sharp · coach · deal · wind · ground

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. ground — crushed
  3. sharp — clever
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. wind — moving air
  9. race — the arms race
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — a contest
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. race — humankind
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. fall — to drop
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — a position
  24. deal — to handle

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