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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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Word bank
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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: safe · cold · fall · chair · can · shower · wave · pitch

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. pitch — completely
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. shower — rain
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. can — a tin
  10. shower — to wash
  11. can — to be able to
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. can — a tin
  23. chair — a leader
  24. cold — not warm

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