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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 120 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: staff · bound · spring · wake · chair · chip · plane · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. staff — employees
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bound — tied together
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bound — obliged
  7. staff — employees
  8. chip — to eat
  9. spring — of water
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. staff — a stick
  13. chair — a leader
  14. stock — shares
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. bound — certain
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wake — a trail
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — a tool
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. chip — for betting
  23. spring — the season
  24. stock — a soup base

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