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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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Word bank
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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: roll · face · shower · safe · ground · bat

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bat — the animal
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. ground — crushed
  8. face — to confront
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — to wash
  11. ground — a position
  12. face — to point toward
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. face — part of the head
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. roll — a list
  18. ground — the earth

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