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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — shares
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. board — a committee
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. rush — hurry
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. track — to keep track
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. stem — to come from
  19. board — to get on
  20. track — a path
  21. stock — goods
  22. track — a song
  23. rash — a series
  24. board — a flat piece

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