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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. content — the amount
  6. wake — a trail
  7. content — happy
  8. kid — child
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. kid — to tease
  17. cold — an illness
  18. sharp — clever
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. bowl — a football final

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