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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: cabinet · race · drill · safe · bass · game · chest · bound

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bass — low music
  5. chest — a box
  6. drill — the tool
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bound — tied together
  9. drill — a practice
  10. bass — the fish
  11. race — humankind
  12. game — a match
  13. drill — army training
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. race — a contest
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bound — obliged
  19. race — the arms race
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. bound — certain
  24. game — wild animals

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