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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.

Make a worksheet

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: file · march · mug · content · wind · safe · plane · drill

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. mug — to rob
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. wind — moving air
  5. march — the month
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mug — a face
  8. march — the month
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. file — a line of people
  12. plane — a tool
  13. drill — the tool
  14. mug — a cup
  15. content — the amount
  16. file — a document
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. drill — army training
  19. wind — moving air
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. march — music
  22. file — a tool
  23. content — happy
  24. drill — a practice

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