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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. track — a song
  5. stem — to come from
  6. craft — a skill
  7. press — newspapers
  8. squash — the sport
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. stock — goods
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. track — a path
  16. shower — to wash
  17. stock — shares
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. press — a publisher
  20. squash — to crush
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. craft — boats
  23. press — to push
  24. stem — a stem cell

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