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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pop — soda
  5. press — newspapers
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. pop — to visit
  9. press — to push
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. pop — music
  12. branch — a division
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. tube — the underground
  19. stock — shares
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. wind — moving air
  22. stock — goods
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. press — a publisher

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