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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
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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: stock · snap · race · arm · hide · dip · pitcher · spell

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. snap — to click
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stock — shares
  7. spell — letters
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. race — the arms race
  12. dip — to sink
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. race — humankind
  16. spell — a short time
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. race — a contest
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. spell — magic
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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