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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stock — shares
  5. tear — from crying
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. root — of a word
  9. press — a publisher
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. root — the cause
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. press — newspapers
  15. band — a music group
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. spring — a coil
  19. press — to push
  20. stock — goods
  21. root — of a plant
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. tear — to rip
  24. spring — of water

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