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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: spring · scale · ball · stock · hide · stick · rest · wind

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. ball — a great time
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. spring — the season
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — in music
  8. spring — of water
  9. rest — a break
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. stock — goods
  16. ball — a dance
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stock — shares
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. rest — what's left
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — for weighing

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