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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: cell · mouse · straw · kick · bark · club · mark · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. club — a group
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mark — a trace
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bark — to shout
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. cell — a phone
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. club — for golf
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. chest — a box
  22. kick — in football
  23. mark — a grade
  24. club — for dancing

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