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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: chest · bear · jam · wake · kick · club

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. kick — in football
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for golf
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bear — to put up with

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