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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 · hand · object · chip · straw · present · march · can

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. hand — in cards
  3. present — there
  4. object — an aim
  5. march — music
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. hand — help
  8. present — the time now
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. present — a gift
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — to eat
  13. object — a thing
  14. can — a tin
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. can — a tin
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. march — the month
  19. bark — to shout
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. can — to be able to
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. march — the month

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