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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. field — for sport
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. kid — child
  7. season — of the year
  8. cold — not warm
  9. kid — to tease
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. season — in sport
  13. board — a committee
  14. shower — to wash
  15. cold — an illness
  16. board — to get on
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — rain
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. field — farmland
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. field — a subject
  24. temple — a place of worship

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