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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.

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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: wound · stock · bay · deal · wake · spring · sharp · chair

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stock — shares
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. spring — the season
  6. chair — a leader
  7. spring — of water
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wake — a trail
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — goods
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. sharp — clever
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wound — an injury

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