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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 124 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 asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — letters
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. race — humankind
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stock — goods
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bulb — for light
  12. stock — shares
  13. file — a tool
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. race — the arms race
  16. press — a publisher
  17. file — a document
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. press — to push
  21. race — a contest
  22. file — a line of people
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. fall — the season

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