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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.

Make a worksheet

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: chair · safe · cold · staff · stock · wind

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. wind — moving air
  4. staff — employees
  5. wind — moving air
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. cold — an illness
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. stock — goods
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. stock — shares
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. staff — employees
  18. cold — not warm

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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