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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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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: arm · foot · chip · dip · cold · stock · pitch · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. foot — a measure
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. chip — to eat
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. pitch — completely
  13. cold — not warm
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. stock — shares
  18. rash — a series
  19. stock — goods
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. rash — on the skin

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