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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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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  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. hide — to keep secret
  2. staff — a stick
  3. mate — a friend
  4. spring — a coil
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. scale — size or range
  7. chip — to eat
  8. spring — of water
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. staff — employees
  11. spring — the season
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — to breed
  15. stock — goods
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — for betting
  18. staff — employees
  19. net — after costs
  20. stock — shares
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  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