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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: safe · game · rule · shower · mine · pop · fine · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rule — government
  4. pop — to visit
  5. fine — all right
  6. fine — high quality
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. rule — a law
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. game — a match
  12. kid — child
  13. pop — music
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. game — wild animals
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. pop — soda
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. shower — to wash
  24. game — a kind of play

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