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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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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: fall · safe · cell · stick · roll · press · squash · court

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  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. safe — out of danger
  2. cell — in biology
  3. press — a publisher
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. press — to push
  7. court — for sport
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. fall — to drop
  10. court — of a king
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — to crush
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. roll — a cake
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. roll — a list
  21. court — of law
  22. press — newspapers
  23. fall — the season
  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