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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: straw · bark · hand · snap · stand · fan · cell · board

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. board — to get on
  4. stand — to bear
  5. board — a committee
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. hand — help
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. cell — in biology
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cell — a phone
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to click
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. hand — part of the body

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