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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: safe · press · stick · cold · mate · fall · row · chip

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mate — to breed
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. press — a publisher
  5. chip — for betting
  6. row — to paddle
  7. press — to push
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. chip — to eat
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. fall — the season
  13. row — a line
  14. mate — a partner
  15. cold — not warm
  16. press — newspapers
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. fall — to drop
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. fall — to drop
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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