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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: saw · content · fan · cold · march · file · safe · wave

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — happy
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. march — music
  8. saw — the tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. march — the month
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. cold — an illness
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cold — not warm
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. file — a tool
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. file — a document
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fan — a supporter

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