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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
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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: board · file · safe · wound · cold · cap · rush · court

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. cap — a hat
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. cap — a lid
  6. rush — hurry
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. court — for sport
  9. cap — of ice
  10. file — a tool
  11. cold — not warm
  12. wound — an injury
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. court — of law
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. court — of a king
  18. board — a committee
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cold — an illness
  21. file — a document
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. board — to get on
  24. file — a line of people

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