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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. hand — help
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cap — of ice
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — shares
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cap — a hat
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. fall — to drop
  13. shower — rain
  14. mark — a trace
  15. cap — a lid
  16. hand — in cards
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. mark — a grade
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. fall — to drop
  23. shower — to wash
  24. fall — the season

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