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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. ground — crushed
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. degree — from a university
  5. cap — a lid
  6. club — a group
  7. degree — an amount
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. club — for dancing
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. degree — temperature
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. club — for golf
  15. cap — a hat
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. stock — shares
  18. ground — a position
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stock — goods
  23. ground — the earth
  24. stock — a soup base

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