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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 120 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 father caught me by the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. fine — high quality
  7. net — after costs
  8. stock — goods
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. fine — all right
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bound — obliged
  15. capital — money
  16. net — for catching
  17. stock — shares
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. rush — hurry
  21. net — in sport
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. capital — a city
  24. fine — a penalty

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