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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: march · trunk · bark · swing · snap · board · straw · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. swing — music
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bark — to shout
  10. swing — in golf
  11. march — the month
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — to get on
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. board — a committee
  17. march — the month
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. march — music
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. snap — to click

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