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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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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: chair · staff · wound · snap · safe · tear · pit · bat

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — a hole
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. snap — to click
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. staff — a stick
  10. chair — a leader
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. staff — employees
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bat — the animal
  20. pit — in a race
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. staff — employees
  23. tear — to rip
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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