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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: foot · cold · stick · rash · press · chair · safe · can

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. can — a tin
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. rash — hasty
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. press — a publisher
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. can — a tin
  14. cold — an illness
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. cold — not warm
  17. can — to be able to
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rash — a series
  21. press — newspapers
  22. foot — a measure
  23. chair — a leader
  24. safe — a strongbox

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