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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. stock — shares
  3. prune — to trim
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. stock — goods
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. row — a line
  9. bank — for money
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bank — of a river
  13. bank — for money
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bound — certain
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bound — tied together
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. prune — to trim
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bound — obliged

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