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

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. march — the month
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. band — a ring
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bark — to shout
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. band — a music group
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. march — music
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. march — the month
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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