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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. file — a tool
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. cold — an illness
  7. degree — temperature
  8. file — a line of people
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cold — not warm
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. file — a document
  20. degree — an amount
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. craft — a skill
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. craft — boats

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