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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: drill · cue · pit · band · safe · file · fine · object

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. cue — a signal
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. fine — high quality
  5. drill — a practice
  6. band — a music group
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cue — for pool
  13. file — a tool
  14. band — a ring
  15. file — a document
  16. object — an aim
  17. object — a thing
  18. object — to protest
  19. drill — the tool
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. cue — a hint
  22. fine — all right
  23. drill — army training
  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