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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: fine · safe · bass · chest · charge · cold · vault · straw

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. fine — all right
  3. cold — not warm
  4. chest — of your body
  5. charge — in control
  6. cold — an illness
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. charge — electricity
  11. chest — of your body
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fine — high quality
  16. vault — a safe
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. charge — a price
  19. chest — a box
  20. bass — the fish
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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