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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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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: fall · cap · file · safe · plane · kid · content · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. file — a document
  3. prune — to trim
  4. fall — to drop
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. fall — to drop
  8. content — happy
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. cap — a hat
  11. cap — a lid
  12. file — a line of people
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. cap — of ice
  16. prune — to trim
  17. plane — a tool
  18. file — a tool
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. content — the amount
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. fall — the season

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