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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: firm · bore · snap · coach · bat · trunk · hide · date

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. firm — steady
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bore — to tire
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bore — to drill
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. bat — the animal
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. date — the fruit
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. firm — a company
  23. firm — decided
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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