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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: last · safe · land · roll · field · game · saw · mug

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. saw — the tool
  3. land — a country
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. roll — a cake
  6. last — finally
  7. game — a match
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. game — wild animals
  10. mug — to rob
  11. field — a subject
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. saw — the tool
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. land — to come down
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. roll — a list
  19. land — ground
  20. mug — a face
  21. last — to go on
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. mug — a cup

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