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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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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: club · tear · chip · bark · last · straw · ground · deal

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. deal — to handle
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. club — a group
  8. last — finally
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. ground — crushed
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — a position
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. club — for golf
  18. chip — for betting
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. chip — to eat
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — to shout

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