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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: bark · season · stick · chest · swing · cold · calf · cue

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. chest — of your body
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. cue — a hint
  8. swing — in golf
  9. chest — a box
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. cue — a signal
  12. bark — to shout
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. swing — music
  15. season — of the year
  16. cue — for pool
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cold — an illness
  19. swing — to play on
  20. cold — not warm
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. season — in sport

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