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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bank — for money
  3. ground — crushed
  4. last — to go on
  5. tube — the underground
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stock — shares
  8. cell — in biology
  9. club — a group
  10. ground — a position
  11. club — for golf
  12. last — final
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tube — a container
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bank — for money
  19. last — finally
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bank — of a river
  23. stock — goods
  24. arm — a part of something

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