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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: arm · race · straw · stand · chair · fan · stock · root

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — shares
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. root — the cause
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. root — of a word
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. race — humankind
  16. root — of a plant
  17. stand — to bear
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. race — a contest
  24. arm — a part of something

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