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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: chest · cap · saw · fine · stock · bowl · scale · season

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. stock — shares
  5. fine — high quality
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cap — a lid
  8. season — in sport
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. chest — a box
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cap — of ice
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cap — a hat
  16. scale — in music
  17. season — of the year
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. stock — goods
  20. fine — all right
  21. scale — size or range
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stock — a soup base

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