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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. spring — of water
  3. land — to come down
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. fall — the season
  7. shower — to wash
  8. object — to protest
  9. lie — to recline
  10. shower — rain
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. fall — to drop
  14. land — ground
  15. land — a country
  16. race — humankind
  17. spring — the season
  18. race — the arms race
  19. spring — a coil
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. fall — to drop
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — a thing
  24. trunk — of a tree

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