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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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 a car
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. last — final
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cue — for pool
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — a hint
  14. shower — rain
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. last — to go on
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. last — finally
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. cap — a hat
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. cap — a lid

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