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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. wound — an injury
  4. prune — to trim
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bat — the animal
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. race — a contest
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. dip — to sink
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. mate — to breed
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. wound — an injury
  18. mate — a friend
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. mate — a partner
  21. prune — to trim
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. race — the arms race

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