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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  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. chair — to sit on
  3. can — a tin
  4. bark — to shout
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. chest — a box
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — obliged
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. bound — certain
  13. can — to be able to
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. can — a tin
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. chair — a leader
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. tear — to rip
  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