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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: bear · craft · bank · straw · chest · cell · drill · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bank — of a river
  3. drill — a practice
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cell — in biology
  7. craft — a skill
  8. chest — of your body
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bear — the animal
  12. drill — army training
  13. bank — for money
  14. craft — boats
  15. bank — for money
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. chest — a box
  19. bear — the animal
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. drill — the tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. kick — in football
  24. chest — of your 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