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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 · bat · safe · file · bass · tube · fork · rest

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. file — a line of people
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. file — a tool
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. file — a document
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — a container
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bat — the animal
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. rest — a break

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