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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 116 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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. fine — all right
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. bat — the animal
  6. craft — a skill
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. tear — from crying
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chair — a leader
  14. tear — to rip
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. fine — high quality
  24. bat — for baseball

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