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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
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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: race · fall · saw · mine · shower · tube · row · bass

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bass — the fish
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. row — a line
  5. fall — to drop
  6. saw — the tool
  7. race — a contest
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. tube — the underground
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. row — to paddle
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. shower — rain
  15. tube — a container
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bass — low music
  20. race — the arms race
  21. fall — to drop
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. race — humankind
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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