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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.

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: cold · row · bore · mouse · safe · game · snap · sharp

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. snap — to click
  6. row — a line
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bore — to tire
  9. game — a match
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. sharp — clever
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bore — to drill

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