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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. stock — shares
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. spring — the season
  6. stock — goods
  7. rash — a series
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. spring — of water
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. vault — a safe
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. club — for golf
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. club — a group
  16. bound — obliged
  17. shower — rain
  18. spring — a coil
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. bound — tied together
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bound — certain
  24. rash — hasty

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