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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. cue — a hint
  3. wind — moving air
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. deal — to handle
  6. cue — for pool
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. band — a ring
  13. spring — the season
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. stock — goods
  16. spring — of water
  17. object — an aim
  18. cue — a signal
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. stock — shares
  21. spring — a coil
  22. wind — moving air
  23. band — a music group
  24. object — a thing

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