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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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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: file · game · pit · dip · ground · bat · safe · race

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. dip — to sink
  3. race — the arms race
  4. ground — the earth
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. ground — crushed
  9. game — a match
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. ground — a position
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. game — wild animals
  19. pit — a hole
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. bat — the animal
  24. file — a document

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