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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: cold · chair · kick · cabinet · court · object · ball · safe

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. kick — in football
  5. object — a thing
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. court — for sport
  9. object — to protest
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. ball — a great time
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. object — an aim
  14. cold — not warm
  15. ball — a dance
  16. court — of a king
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. court — of law
  24. cold — an illness

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