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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: plane · chest · roll · cold · pass · band · rest · safe

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. pass — a permit
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. roll — a cake
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. band — a ring
  10. roll — a list
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cold — the Cold War

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