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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: pitch · lie · safe · race · fall · shower · chair · spring

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. fall — to drop
  5. lie — to recline
  6. chair — a leader
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. shower — to wash
  10. spring — of water
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. shower — rain
  13. race — the arms race
  14. spring — the season
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. race — a contest
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. race — humankind
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. pitch — completely
  23. spring — a coil
  24. fall — the season

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