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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. staff — employees
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. stock — shares
  7. rash — hasty
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. stock — goods
  13. rash — a series
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bark — to shout
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. stem — to come from
  22. staff — employees
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. rash — on the skin

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