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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: cold · spell · present · stock · object · ground · season · fan

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. stock — shares
  4. present — there
  5. present — the time now
  6. ground — crushed
  7. object — a thing
  8. ground — a position
  9. stock — goods
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. cold — not warm
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. object — to protest
  15. object — an aim
  16. present — a gift
  17. season — of the year
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. season — in sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. ground — the earth
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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