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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: safe · snap · plane · chair · march · bass · bear · hide

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bass — low music
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. march — music
  12. bear — the animal
  13. plane — a tool
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. snap — to click
  16. chair — a leader
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. march — the month

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