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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: mate · season · coach · stock · cell · prune · wind · cap

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. stock — goods
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mate — to breed
  6. cap — of ice
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cap — a hat
  12. wind — moving air
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cell — in biology
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mate — a friend
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. mate — a partner
  20. season — of the year
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. season — in sport
  24. stock — shares

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