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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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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: straw · ruler · rest · fall · shower · pitch · race · ball

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. shower — to wash
  10. race — a contest
  11. fall — the season
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. ball — a great time
  17. ball — a dance
  18. race — humankind
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pitch — completely
  22. race — the arms race
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. straw — dry grass

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