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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. field — a subject
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. object — to protest
  8. shower — to wash
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. field — farmland
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. object — a thing
  14. dip — to sink
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. shower — rain
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. field — for sport
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. cold — not warm
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. object — an aim
  23. cold — an illness
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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