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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: sharp · bat · craft · cabinet · tear · snap · coach · safe

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. snap — to click
  6. bat — the animal
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. craft — boats
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. sharp — clever
  11. craft — a skill
  12. tear — from crying
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. tear — to rip
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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