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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. season — of the year
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. race — the arms race
  7. band — a music group
  8. march — music
  9. hand — help
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. hand — in cards
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. race — a contest
  16. rule — government
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. season — in sport
  19. race — humankind
  20. rule — a law
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. band — a ring

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