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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 · drill · bark · degree · safe · kid · pass · jam

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. file — a tool
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bark — to shout
  5. file — a document
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pass — a permit
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. kid — child
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. drill — army training
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. drill — a practice
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — temperature
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bark — of a tree

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