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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: sharp · chair · wind · stock · hide · lash · court · jam

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. wind — moving air
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. stock — goods
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of law
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. sharp — clever
  24. court — of a king

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