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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.

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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: hand · spell · staff · wound · rest · wind · bulb · stock

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  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. rest — what's left
  2. staff — employees
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. spell — magic
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bulb — for light
  8. hand — in cards
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. staff — a stick
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stock — goods
  17. hand — help
  18. spell — letters
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stock — shares
  21. rest — what's left
  22. staff — employees
  23. rest — a break
  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