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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. press — to push
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. stock — shares
  10. press — a publisher
  11. wax — to grow
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — goods
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. press — newspapers
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. field — a subject
  23. board — to get on
  24. board — a committee

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