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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. press — newspapers
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — help
  6. pop — soda
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. hand — in cards
  12. tube — the underground
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — to push
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pop — music
  20. stock — goods
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. capital — money
  23. stock — shares
  24. tube — a container

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