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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. fine — high quality
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. game — wild animals
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. game — a match
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitch — completely
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bat — the animal
  19. fine — all right
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pound — a weight
  24. game — a kind of play

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