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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 120 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: game · race · bat · drill · bowl · squash · sharp · safe

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. race — the arms race
  4. game — wild animals
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. race — a contest
  8. drill — the tool
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. drill — a practice
  12. sharp — clever
  13. drill — army training
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. game — a match
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. squash — to crush
  22. race — humankind
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bowl — a football final

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