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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: swing · tear · bulb · lean · wake · chair · race · scale

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. scale — size or range
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. race — humankind
  7. lean — to bend
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. tear — to rip
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. chair — a leader
  14. tear — from crying
  15. race — the arms race
  16. swing — music
  17. bulb — for light
  18. swing — to play on
  19. wake — a trail
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. scale — in music
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. swing — in golf
  24. race — a contest

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