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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: trunk · rest · board · hand · bark · bound · bass · kick

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — certain
  5. rest — what's left
  6. board — to get on
  7. rest — what's left
  8. hand — help
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. bark — to shout
  23. kick — in football
  24. rest — a break

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