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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 120 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: ball · arm · firm · pitcher · clip · stock · mate · scale

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. firm — steady
  4. clip — for paper
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. ball — a dance
  7. scale — size or range
  8. stock — goods
  9. clip — a video
  10. firm — a company
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. mate — a friend
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. mate — a partner
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. mate — to breed
  20. scale — in music
  21. firm — decided
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. clip — to cut
  24. stock — shares

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