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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 120 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: kick · firm · wind · chest · trunk · bank · mark · clip

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. firm — steady
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. chest — a box
  7. bank — for money
  8. clip — a video
  9. firm — a company
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bank — for money
  15. clip — to cut
  16. mark — a grade
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. chest — of your body
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bank — of a river
  23. mark — a trace
  24. firm — decided

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