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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. rest — what's left
  3. stock — shares
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. face — part of the head
  6. lean — to bend
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. lean — thin
  11. face — to confront
  12. press — to push
  13. face — to point toward
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rest — what's left
  16. press — a publisher
  17. press — newspapers
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rest — a break
  23. stock — goods
  24. stock — a soup base

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