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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.

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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 · bay · face · pop · stock · file · cold

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. stock — goods
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bound — obliged
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — to confront
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. pop — to visit
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. bound — certain
  20. staff — employees
  21. file — a document
  22. face — part of the head
  23. stock — shares
  24. cold — not warm

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