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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 · cell · pound · ball · band · roll · stock · bark

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. stock — goods
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — a list
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. stock — shares
  13. ball — a great time
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bark — to shout
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. ball — a dance
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. band — a music group
  23. pound — a weight
  24. band — a ring

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