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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. stand — to bear
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. kid — to tease
  5. scale — in music
  6. stock — shares
  7. spring — a coil
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. scale — size or range
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bank — for money
  14. spring — the season
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bat — the animal
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. kid — child
  19. stock — goods
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. spring — of water
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. scale — for weighing

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