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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. row — a line
  3. season — in sport
  4. rule — government
  5. mark — a trace
  6. rule — a law
  7. press — to push
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. row — to paddle
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. press — a publisher
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. mark — a grade
  14. press — newspapers
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. stock — shares
  17. branch — a division
  18. wax — to grow
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. stock — goods

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