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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. stock — shares
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. stock — goods
  7. branch — a division
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. press — to push
  10. press — newspapers
  11. season — of the year
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. net — after costs
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. net — for catching
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. season — in sport
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. press — a publisher
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bat — the animal

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