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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 · chip · key · spell · mouse · straw · hand · track

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. track — a song
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hand — help
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. spell — letters
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. track — a path
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. key — the most important part
  17. key — in music
  18. spell — magic
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. key — for a lock
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. hand — in cards
  23. track — to keep track
  24. straw — dry grass

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