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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · arm · bat · game · stock · pass

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. game — a match
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. stock — shares
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. stock — goods
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bark — of a tree

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