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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · bear · pitcher · cold · hand · land · safe · race

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. race — a contest
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cold — an illness
  6. land — to come down
  7. race — the arms race
  8. cold — not warm
  9. land — a country
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. land — ground
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. hand — help
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. bear — the animal
  23. race — humankind
  24. hand — in cards

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