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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.

Words on the sheet
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: hand · leaves · court · object · arm · stock · cold · hide

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. object — an aim
  5. court — of a king
  6. stock — shares
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. cold — not warm
  14. object — a thing
  15. court — for sport
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. stock — goods
  20. object — to protest
  21. court — of law
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cold — the Cold War

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