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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: hide · bowl · chair · bark · rash · pit · bat · safe

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. pit — in a race
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. pit — a hole
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rash — a series
  23. bat — the animal
  24. chair — a leader

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