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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: rush · spring · calf · stock · racket · tear · arm · bass

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. tear — to rip
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. tear — from crying
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bass — the fish
  15. spring — the season
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. bass — low music
  18. stock — goods
  19. tear — from crying
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. stock — shares

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