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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: bowl · safe · degree · kid · ball · toast · drill · wake

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  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 — out of danger
  2. kid — to tease
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. degree — from a university
  6. ball — a dance
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — army training
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wake — a trail
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. kid — child
  18. ball — a great time
  19. toast — bread
  20. degree — temperature
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. degree — an amount
  23. safe — a strongbox
  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