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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. chest — of your body
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. stock — goods
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. hand — in cards
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. hand — help
  12. chest — a box
  13. bass — low music
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. game — wild animals
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. game — a match
  22. stock — shares
  23. chest — of your body
  24. cabinet — ministers

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