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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 116 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: band · kid · safe · fine · perch · shower · dip · bat

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bat — the animal
  4. fine — all right
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. kid — to tease
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fine — high quality
  11. perch — the fish
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. band — a ring
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. kid — child
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — rain
  24. perch — for a bird

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