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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 116 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. file — a tool
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. tear — from crying
  8. last — final
  9. tear — from crying
  10. last — finally
  11. last — to go on
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. file — a line of people
  16. sharp — clever
  17. court — for sport
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. tear — to rip
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. court — of a king
  22. file — a document
  23. court — of law
  24. bowl — a dish

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