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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 116 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. staff — a stick
  7. staff — employees
  8. field — for sport
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. lie — to recline
  11. last — finally
  12. cold — an illness
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. band — a music group
  15. staff — employees
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. last — final
  18. band — a ring
  19. last — to go on
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. band — a rubber band

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