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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: ball · arm · shower · stock · tear · chest · pit · craft

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. pit — in a race
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. ball — a great time
  7. craft — a skill
  8. stock — goods
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. shower — rain
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. stock — shares
  19. shower — to wash
  20. craft — boats
  21. pit — a hole
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. stock — a soup base

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