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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. kid — child
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. chip — for betting
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. foot — a measure
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. chip — to eat
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. band — a music group
  22. branch — a division
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. band — a ring

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