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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: board · race · fan · safe · pit · spring · chest · shower

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. pit — a hole
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. board — a committee
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. race — a contest
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — the season
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. pit — in a race
  19. chest — a box
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. race — humankind
  23. chest — of your body
  24. board — to get on

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