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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: bark · tube · chest · rest · coach · row · mark · bay

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. chest — a box
  3. rest — what's left
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mark — a trace
  6. tube — the underground
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. row — a line
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. rest — a break
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. chest — of your body
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. bark — to shout
  20. tube — a container
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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