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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: lie · hide · fall · wave · bat · shower · club · race

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  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. club — for golf
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bat — the animal
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — a contest
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. lie — to recline
  8. shower — rain
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. club — a group
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. race — humankind
  19. shower — to wash
  20. fall — to drop
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. fall — the season
  23. club — for dancing
  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