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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: march · kid · mate · safe · coach · net · stick · bat

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. net — for catching
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. net — in sport
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. mate — a partner
  12. net — after costs
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. march — the month
  15. kid — to tease
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. kid — child
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. coach — a trainer

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