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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. press — to push
  3. race — humankind
  4. field — for sport
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. race — the arms race
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. press — newspapers
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. hand — help
  14. race — a contest
  15. field — a subject
  16. stock — shares
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — a box
  19. mark — a grade
  20. field — farmland
  21. hand — in cards
  22. press — a publisher
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. mark — a trace

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