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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.

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: row · stock · hand · ball · key · chest · plane · rash

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. key — for a lock
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. key — in music
  6. chest — of your body
  7. hand — help
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. plane — a tool
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. stock — goods
  14. ball — a dance
  15. key — the most important part
  16. ball — a great time
  17. stock — shares
  18. hand — in cards
  19. rash — a series
  20. chest — a box
  21. rash — hasty
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. plane — an aircraft

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