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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: arm · kid · ruler · bowl · field · stock

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. stock — goods
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. kid — child
  10. stock — shares
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. field — for sport
  18. arm — part of the body

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