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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 · vault · craft · cold · bark · pass · safe · file

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. cold — not warm
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. vault — a safe
  7. bark — to shout
  8. file — a line of people
  9. pass — a permit
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. file — a document
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. cold — an illness
  16. craft — boats
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. craft — a skill
  19. file — a tool
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. craft — a handicraft

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