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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: kid · arm · object · stock · bass · rash · roll · land

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. land — ground
  6. kid — to tease
  7. stock — goods
  8. kid — child
  9. object — to protest
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. object — an aim
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. land — to come down
  14. rash — hasty
  15. land — a country
  16. roll — a list
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. stock — shares
  20. rash — a series
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — low music
  24. object — a thing

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