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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 · bat · prune · firm · safe · chair · wound · ruler

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. wound — an injury
  5. prune — to trim
  6. file — a tool
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. bat — the animal
  9. firm — decided
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chair — a leader
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. firm — steady
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. file — a document
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. firm — a company

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