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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: safe · deal · mark · rash · kid · march · swing · game

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. swing — to play on
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. kid — child
  5. march — music
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. mark — a grade
  8. swing — in golf
  9. march — the month
  10. rash — hasty
  11. swing — music
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. game — a match
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. march — the month
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mark — a trace
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rash — a series
  21. deal — to handle
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. game — wild animals
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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