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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: stick · bark · band · trunk · ball · mark · chair · straw

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bark — to shout
  6. chair — a leader
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. mark — a trace
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. band — a ring
  12. ball — a dance
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. band — a music group
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. ball — a great time
  24. mark — a grade

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