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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. fall — to drop
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. cue — a signal
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. cue — a hint
  8. press — to push
  9. fall — the season
  10. press — newspapers
  11. kid — to tease
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. press — a publisher
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cue — for pool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wake — a trail
  24. scale — for weighing

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