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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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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: rest · clip · chest · degree · foot · stock · bulb · mark

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chest — of your body
  6. stock — shares
  7. degree — an amount
  8. clip — a video
  9. bulb — for light
  10. stock — goods
  11. foot — a measure
  12. degree — temperature
  13. rest — a break
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. degree — from a university
  17. mark — a trace
  18. rest — what's left
  19. clip — for paper
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — a box
  22. bulb — for light
  23. mark — a grade
  24. clip — to cut

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