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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 116 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. court — of law
  6. spring — the season
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — music
  11. stock — goods
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. tear — from crying
  17. press — a publisher
  18. swing — in golf
  19. spring — of water
  20. stock — shares
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. spring — a coil
  24. wake — a trail

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