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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: ruler · kid · bay · safe · last · cell

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. kid — child
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. last — to go on
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. last — final
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. cell — in biology
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. last — finally

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