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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. row — a line
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mate — a partner
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stock — goods
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. mate — to breed
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. stock — shares
  16. rush — hurry
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. roll — a cake
  19. roll — a list
  20. mate — a friend
  21. row — to paddle
  22. chest — of your body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. chest — a box

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