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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: suit · bowl · rash · tear · fan · stick · chest · straw

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rash — a series
  3. suit — in cards
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. chest — a box
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. chest — of your body
  15. suit — clothes
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rash — hasty
  23. suit — to fit
  24. tear — from crying

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