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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  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. tear — to rip
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. stock — goods
  4. press — to push
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. tear — from crying
  8. game — a match
  9. game — wild animals
  10. stock — shares
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. saw — the tool
  13. tear — from crying
  14. saw — the tool
  15. mark — a trace
  16. press — a publisher
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — completely
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. pitch — a sports field
  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