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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: race · fall · kid · lean · safe · rock · press · ball

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. press — newspapers
  4. rock — music
  5. lean — thin
  6. fall — to drop
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a great time
  10. race — a contest
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. race — humankind
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. fall — the season
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. press — a publisher
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kid — child
  22. press — to push
  23. rock — a stone
  24. race — the arms race

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