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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 124 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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. stock — shares
  4. root — of a plant
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. fine — all right
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. root — the cause
  12. fine — high quality
  13. roll — a cake
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stock — goods
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. hand — help
  18. root — of a word
  19. hand — in cards
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. roll — a list
  24. staff — employees

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