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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. mug — to rob
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. ground — the earth
  6. mug — a face
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bass — the fish
  16. ground — crushed
  17. bass — low music
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. ground — a position
  20. game — a match
  21. bat — the animal
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. mug — a cup
  24. game — wild animals

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