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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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Word bank
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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 · toast · bark · nail · straw · band · craft · jam

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. band — a music group
  3. craft — a skill
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — to shout
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chest — of your body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. toast — bread
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. chest — a box
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. band — a ring
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. straw — dry grass

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