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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: spell · face · mate · stock · wind · bass · arm · hide

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. face — to point toward
  6. spell — magic
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spell — letters
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wind — moving air
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. mate — a partner
  15. stock — shares
  16. spell — a short time
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. stock — goods
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bass — the fish
  22. wind — moving air
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bass — low 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