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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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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: rash · stem · bark · chest · wind · arm · capital · club

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chest — of your body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. club — a group
  7. rash — a series
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chest — a box
  11. capital — a city
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rash — hasty
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bark — to shout
  18. club — for dancing
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. club — for golf
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. capital — money

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