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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: straw · drill · safe · ball · spring · kid · game · last

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. game — wild animals
  7. last — to go on
  8. drill — the tool
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. drill — a practice
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. drill — army training
  14. spring — of water
  15. last — final
  16. last — finally
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. spring — the season
  19. kid — child
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. game — a match
  23. spring — a coil
  24. safe — out of danger

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