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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 120 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: field · pop · pass · current · safe · wake · wound · cabinet

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pop — soda
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. field — for sport
  9. pass — a permit
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. current — of water
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pop — to visit
  18. wound — an injury
  19. field — a subject
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. current — happening now
  22. field — farmland
  23. current — electric
  24. pop — music

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