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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wound · rule · arm · object · band · rash · stock · kick

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. object — to protest
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. object — a thing
  9. band — a music group
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — a law
  12. stock — goods
  13. wound — an injury
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. rash — a series
  16. stock — shares
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rule — government
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. rash — hasty
  23. object — an aim
  24. kick — in football

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