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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. mate — to breed
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. press — to push
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mate — a friend
  11. march — the month
  12. face — to confront
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. march — music
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. face — part of the head
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. tear — to rip
  19. face — to point toward
  20. march — the month
  21. mate — a partner
  22. press — a publisher
  23. stock — shares
  24. press — newspapers

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