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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 · saw · content · bark · deal · safe · arm · spell

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. spell — a short time
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. saw — the tool
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — letters
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. content — happy
  14. bark — to shout
  15. deal — to handle
  16. content — the amount
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. chest — a box
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. chest — of your body
  22. saw — the tool
  23. chest — of your body
  24. deal — a big deal

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