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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: stock · straw · rule · pit · arm · scale · spring · stand

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. pit — a hole
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. stock — shares
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. spring — of water
  13. pit — in a race
  14. rule — a law
  15. scale — in music
  16. spring — the season
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. spring — a coil
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. stock — goods

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