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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. deal — to handle
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. cold — not warm
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bass — low music
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bass — the fish
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stock — goods
  19. cold — an illness
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. degree — an amount
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. stem — of a plant

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