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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. field — for sport
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. field — a subject
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. kid — to tease
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. last — final
  9. cell — in biology
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. last — finally
  12. kid — child
  13. field — farmland
  14. cell — a phone
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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