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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.

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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: foot · fine · tube · face · arm · plane · stock · squash

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. squash — the sport
  5. tube — the underground
  6. face — to point toward
  7. fine — all right
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. stock — goods
  12. squash — to crush
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. face — to confront
  17. plane — a tool
  18. face — part of the head
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. foot — a measure
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. stock — shares
  24. fine — a penalty

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