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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. scale — size or range
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. stock — shares
  8. spring — the season
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. stock — goods
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — to bear
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. pound — a weight
  18. band — a ring
  19. spring — of water
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. band — a music group
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — for weighing

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