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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: board · safe · cold · race · cell · hand

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. board — to get on
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cell — in biology
  6. hand — help
  7. race — a contest
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. hand — in cards
  12. cell — a phone
  13. board — a committee
  14. cold — not warm
  15. race — the arms race
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. race — humankind
  18. cell — in a prison

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