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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 120 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: rule · sharp · court · bank · chest · bark · arm · wind

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. rule — a law
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rule — government
  7. bank — of a river
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bank — for money
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. court — of a king
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. sharp — clever
  21. court — for sport
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bank — for money
  24. court — of law

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