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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · spring · cell · wave · scale · hide

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. spring — the season
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. scale — in music
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. chair — a leader
  18. scale — size or range

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