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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: date · firm · march · race · safe · degree · fine · land

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. race — a contest
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. firm — decided
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. fine — high quality
  8. date — the fruit
  9. degree — temperature
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. race — humankind
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. race — the arms race
  15. march — the month
  16. firm — a company
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. fine — all right
  21. firm — steady
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — an amount
  24. land — ground

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