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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: staff · safe · game · toast · bound · clip · fall · chair

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. staff — a stick
  4. toast — bread
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. fall — to drop
  9. staff — employees
  10. chair — a leader
  11. bound — obliged
  12. fall — the season
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. bound — tied together
  15. clip — for paper
  16. staff — employees
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. game — wild animals
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bound — certain
  22. clip — a video
  23. game — a match
  24. clip — to cut

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