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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.

Make a worksheet

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: arm · straw · court · band · stock · spell · bowl · wound

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. court — for sport
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. stock — shares
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. wound — an injury
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. spell — magic
  17. band — a music group
  18. spell — a short time
  19. stock — goods
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. band — a ring
  23. spell — letters
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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