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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: chest · club · bound · wind · bark · staff · mug · mark

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. staff — a stick
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — a group
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — tied together
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. mug — a cup
  15. chest — a box
  16. wind — moving air
  17. staff — employees
  18. club — for golf
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mug — to rob
  21. mark — a trace
  22. staff — employees
  23. mark — a grade
  24. chest — of your body

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