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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: capital · stem · arm · fall · stick · bass · club · sharp

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. club — for golf
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bass — low music
  9. club — a group
  10. bass — the fish
  11. club — for dancing
  12. capital — a city
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. fall — to drop
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. sharp — clever
  18. stem — to come from
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. fall — the season
  21. capital — money
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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