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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: safe · season · hand · rash · drill · scale · cell · foot

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. season — in sport
  4. drill — a practice
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. drill — the tool
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. rash — a series
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cell — a phone
  15. hand — in cards
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. drill — army training
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. season — of the year
  20. foot — a measure
  21. scale — in music
  22. rash — hasty
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rash — on the skin

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