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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 120 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: game · press · fall · safe · calf · straw · file · content

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. fall — to drop
  3. press — newspapers
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. content — happy
  12. game — wild animals
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. file — a document
  18. press — to push
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. game — a match
  21. press — a publisher
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a tool
  24. content — the amount

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