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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: cold · squash · arm · mark · bear · wave · stock · bat

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. stock — goods
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. squash — to crush
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. bear — the animal
  21. stock — shares
  22. bear — the animal
  23. mark — a trace
  24. squash — the sport

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