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

Word bank: bark · firm · chest · wind · club · pass

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — decided
  3. club — for dancing
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. firm — steady
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bark — to shout
  10. club — a group
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. chest — a box
  16. club — for golf
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wind — moving air

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