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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: ball · mine · dip · season · wind · track · stock · drill

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. drill — the tool
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. track — a path
  6. track — to keep track
  7. drill — a practice
  8. track — a song
  9. season — in sport
  10. drill — army training
  11. stock — goods
  12. wind — moving air
  13. ball — a great time
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. dip — to sink
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. ball — a dance
  23. dip — a sauce
  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