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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. court — of a king
  3. scale — in music
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bore — to drill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. press — a publisher
  11. tear — from crying
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bore — to tire
  16. press — to push
  17. scale — size or range
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stock — shares
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. tear — to rip
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. lean — thin
  24. lean — to rest against

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