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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: branch · kick · track · chest · straw · roll · coach · kid

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. roll — a cake
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. kid — child
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kid — to tease
  12. chest — a box
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. kick — in football
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. roll — a list
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. chest — of your body
  21. branch — a division
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. track — a song
  24. coach — a trainer

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