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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. fork — in a road
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. rush — hurry
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — in music
  20. stand — to bear
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. cold — an illness
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. cold — not warm

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