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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: bank · chair · straw · file · pass · lash · chest · jam

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. bank — of a river
  7. file — a tool
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. file — a document
  10. bank — for money
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. chest — a box
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. bank — for money
  21. chest — of your body
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. pass — a permit

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