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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.

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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  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. wound — an injury
  2. net — in sport
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. net — after costs
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. prune — to trim
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. press — to push
  9. rush — hurry
  10. bass — the fish
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stock — goods
  15. net — for catching
  16. bass — low music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stock — shares
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — completely
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. rush — a thrill
  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