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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. cue — a hint
  5. stock — goods
  6. wind — moving air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. cue — a signal
  9. stock — shares
  10. spring — of water
  11. cell — a phone
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cue — for pool
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. cell — in biology

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