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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. cap — a hat
  3. stock — goods
  4. net — for catching
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. net — after costs
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. cap — a lid
  11. net — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. bore — to tire
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. race — a contest
  18. cap — of ice
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. race — humankind
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bore — to drill
  23. race — the arms race
  24. chest — of your body

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