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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: wound · safe · rest · scale · race · content · ball · court

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. race — humankind
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rest — a break
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a dance
  7. content — the amount
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. court — for sport
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wound — an injury
  14. court — of law
  15. rest — what's left
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. court — of a king
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. content — happy
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. scale — in music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. ball — a round shape

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