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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. bulb — for light
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. scale — in music
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. cell — in biology
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. scale — size or range
  13. foot — a measure
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stock — goods
  19. cell — a phone
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wound — an injury
  22. stock — shares
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. rock — a stone

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