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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: pit · safe · content · chest · rest · plane · wake · ball

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chest — of your body
  6. content — happy
  7. pit — in a race
  8. chest — a box
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. pit — a hole
  12. ball — a great time
  13. wake — a trail
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. content — the amount
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. ball — a dance
  22. plane — a tool
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. chest — of your body

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