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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: last · pit · stock · cell · race · safe

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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. pit — a hole
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. last — to go on
  7. stock — shares
  8. pit — in a race
  9. cell — a phone
  10. last — finally
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. race — a contest
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. race — the arms race
  15. stock — goods
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. cell — in biology
  18. last — final

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