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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.

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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: coach · deal · season · wind · press · stock · current · tube

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. current — electric
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. deal — to handle
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. season — in sport
  8. stock — shares
  9. tube — the underground
  10. press — a publisher
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. press — newspapers
  13. current — of water
  14. current — happening now
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tube — a container
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. season — of the year
  20. press — to push
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. stock — goods
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. coach — a trainer

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