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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 · pit · straw · kid · leaves · charge · shower · chest

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. shower — rain
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pit — a hole
  5. kid — child
  6. charge — electricity
  7. shower — to wash
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. charge — in control
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chest — a box
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. charge — a price
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — to tease
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pit — in a race
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. chest — of your body

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