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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. bank — of a river
  4. file — a tool
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. file — a line of people
  7. firm — steady
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. last — to go on
  10. firm — decided
  11. stock — shares
  12. press — to push
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. firm — a company
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bank — for money
  17. last — final
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bank — for money
  20. snap — to click
  21. stock — goods
  22. file — a document
  23. press — newspapers
  24. last — finally

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