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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. cell — a phone
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. fine — all right
  7. band — a ring
  8. wound — an injury
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. drill — a practice
  12. branch — a division
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. drill — the tool
  15. cell — in biology
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. fine — high quality
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wake — a trail
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a music group
  24. drill — army training

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