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

Word bank: lash · kid · game · track · chest · straw

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. track — a path
  6. kid — child
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. game — wild animals
  9. kid — to tease
  10. track — a song
  11. chest — of your body
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. track — to keep track
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. lash — an eyelash

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