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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 ________________ the button?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. lean — to bend
  3. land — ground
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. squash — to crush
  6. land — to come down
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. fine — all right
  11. press — newspapers
  12. stock — goods
  13. land — a country
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. stock — shares
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. squash — the sport
  22. lean — thin
  23. fine — high quality
  24. press — a publisher

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