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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 · swing · perch · chip · rush · rest · straw · tube

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. rest — what's left
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. rush — hurry
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. tube — a container
  12. chest — a box
  13. tube — the underground
  14. swing — music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. swing — in golf
  17. rest — what's left
  18. swing — to play on
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rest — a break
  22. perch — the fish
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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