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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
468
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: bat · hide · stock · cabinet · season · wind · rock · chest

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. season — in sport
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — shares
  7. chest — a box
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. bat — the animal
  10. season — of the year
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. rock — a stone
  18. chest — of your body
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rock — music

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