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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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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: safe · bound · club · clip · field · fall · can · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. clip — to cut
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. bound — tied together
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — a group
  9. bound — obliged
  10. kid — to tease
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. field — farmland
  13. clip — a video
  14. bound — certain
  15. field — for sport
  16. fall — to drop
  17. clip — for paper
  18. fall — the season
  19. can — a tin
  20. field — a subject
  21. kid — child
  22. fall — to drop
  23. club — for dancing
  24. safe — out of danger

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