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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. stock — goods
  5. spell — a short time
  6. press — a publisher
  7. mine — for digging
  8. wax — to grow
  9. stock — shares
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. press — to push
  19. spell — magic
  20. press — newspapers
  21. spell — letters
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. wax — in the ear

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