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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. stem — to come from
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. press — a publisher
  6. root — of a word
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. press — newspapers
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. root — of a plant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — shares
  16. root — the cause
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. sharp — clever
  19. field — a subject
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. field — farmland
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. field — for sport

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