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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. cap — a lid
  3. stock — shares
  4. land — a country
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stock — goods
  8. tear — from crying
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cap — of ice
  11. tear — to rip
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. branch — a division
  15. cap — a hat
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. press — to push
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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