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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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. rock — to move gently
  4. drill — a practice
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rock — music
  7. pass — a permit
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. spring — of water
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. spring — a coil
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. drill — the tool
  16. tube — a container
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. drill — army training
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. rock — a stone
  23. tube — the underground
  24. spring — the season

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