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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: lie · staff · dip · bass · fall · court · race · chair

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. fall — to drop
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bass — the fish
  7. fall — the season
  8. race — humankind
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. staff — employees
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — for sport
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. race — a contest
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. dip — to sink
  19. court — of law
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. lie — to recline
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — an untruth

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