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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. press — to push
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. march — music
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. stock — goods
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bark — to shout
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. march — the month
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. stock — shares
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. press — newspapers
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. press — a publisher
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. march — the month
  24. arm — part of the body

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