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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. track — a path
  3. chest — a box
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — clothes
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. kid — child
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. can — a tin
  11. suit — to fit
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — to shout
  14. chair — a leader
  15. track — to keep track
  16. track — a song
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — to be able to
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. can — a tin
  24. jam — in traffic

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