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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 · object · straw · press · chest · bat · face · bay

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. press — a publisher
  4. face — to confront
  5. press — to push
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. bat — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. object — to protest
  11. face — to point toward
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chest — of your body
  14. face — part of the head
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. press — newspapers
  17. object — an aim
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. object — a thing
  22. chest — a box
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bat — in an idiom

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