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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. chest — of your body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. stock — goods
  6. ground — a position
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — of your body
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chip — to eat
  12. bound — certain
  13. chest — a box
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. chip — for betting
  18. kid — to tease
  19. stock — shares
  20. bound — tied together
  21. kid — child
  22. bound — obliged
  23. ground — the earth
  24. arm — part of the body

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