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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: chest · rest · stick · game · kid · cue · bark · wave

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. rest — what's left
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cue — a signal
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. kid — child
  8. bark — to shout
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rest — what's left
  12. game — a match
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. chest — a box
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rest — a break
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cue — for pool
  24. wave — of the sea

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