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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.

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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: wind · spring · scale · object · cold · rock · coach · mug

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. object — a thing
  8. scale — in music
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. object — to protest
  11. scale — size or range
  12. spring — a coil
  13. cold — not warm
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. object — an aim
  16. mug — a cup
  17. rock — music
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rock — a stone
  21. mug — a face
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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