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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.

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: clip · staff · arm · stock · mine · lean · pass · chest

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. stock — shares
  3. lean — thin
  4. chest — of your body
  5. staff — employees
  6. chest — a box
  7. lean — to bend
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. staff — employees
  10. clip — a video
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. mine — for digging
  14. clip — to cut
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. stock — goods
  23. chest — of your body
  24. 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