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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: pit · coach · safe · cell · rest · spring · kid · fine

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fine — all right
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fine — high quality
  9. spring — of water
  10. rest — a break
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cell — a phone
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. spring — the season
  19. pit — a hole
  20. cell — in biology
  21. kid — child
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. pit — in a race
  24. coach — a trainer

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