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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: bark · squash · kick · rock · straw · snap · hand · track

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. hand — in cards
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. kick — in football
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rock — music
  15. rock — a stone
  16. track — a song
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. bark — to shout
  19. squash — to crush
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. hand — help

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