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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. craft — boats
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cold — an illness
  7. craft — a skill
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. bat — the animal
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. pass — a permit
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. spring — of water
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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