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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: cold · safe · mark · fork · last · shower

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. cold — an illness
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. last — to go on
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — a trace
  11. shower — to wash
  12. last — finally
  13. fork — in a road
  14. last — final
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. shower — rain
  18. safe — a strongbox

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