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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: chest · mate · bat · wake · arm · sharp · bear · safe

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. wake — a trail
  3. chest — of your body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — to breed
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bear — the animal
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. chest — a box
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bear — the animal
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bat — the animal

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