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

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. tube — the underground
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. rest — a break
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. tube — a container
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. rest — what's left
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. rest — what's left

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