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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: straw · mine · fork · chair · bank · coach · bark · squash

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bank — for money
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. fork — in a road
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bank — of a river
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the sport
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bark — to shout
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bank — for money
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. mine — for digging

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