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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 · fall · race · stand · chest · swing · arm · field

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bulb — for light
  3. swing — in golf
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stand — to bear
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. bulb — for light
  8. race — a contest
  9. chest — of your body
  10. field — a subject
  11. fall — to drop
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — for sport
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. chest — a box
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. swing — to play on
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. swing — music
  20. race — the arms race
  21. fall — to drop
  22. race — humankind
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. arm — part of the body

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