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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: foot · wax · safe · fork · mine · land · cold · ruler

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. mine — for digging
  6. cold — not warm
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. fork — in a road
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cold — an illness
  17. land — to come down
  18. foot — a measure
  19. land — a country
  20. wax — to grow
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. land — ground
  24. cold — the Cold War

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