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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 120 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: craft · bat · cold · rest · tear · press · safe · trunk

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. craft — a skill
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bat — the animal
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. tear — from crying
  15. craft — boats
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. tear — from crying
  18. press — to push
  19. press — a publisher
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. press — newspapers
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rest — a break
  24. rest — what's left

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