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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: pound · bat · safe · root · file · game · date · mark

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. root — the cause
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. game — a match
  7. file — a document
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. pound — a weight
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. file — a tool
  13. mark — a grade
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. mark — a trace
  16. root — of a plant
  17. game — wild animals
  18. date — the fruit
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. bat — the animal
  23. file — a line of people
  24. root — of a word

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