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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: fall · saw · content · chest · cell · bark · mug · track

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. content — the amount
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. saw — the tool
  5. chest — a box
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. cell — a phone
  9. content — happy
  10. track — a path
  11. mug — to rob
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. mug — a cup
  14. track — to keep track
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. chest — of your body
  18. fall — to drop
  19. cell — in biology
  20. track — a song
  21. saw — the tool
  22. fall — the season
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. mug — a face

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