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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · ruler · spring · stock · cold · cell · rash · rush

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. rush — hurry
  3. chest — a box
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. chest — of your body
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rash — a series
  17. chest — of your body
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. stock — shares
  20. rash — hasty
  21. cell — a phone
  22. stock — goods
  23. spring — of water
  24. rush — a thrill

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