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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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468
Word bank
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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mark — a trace
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. march — the month
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — a division
  11. mark — a grade
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. chest — a box
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. march — the month
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. march — music
  23. chest — of your body
  24. straw — a straw man

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