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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. root — the cause
  6. press — newspapers
  7. wound — an injury
  8. press — to push
  9. wax — to grow
  10. file — a line of people
  11. press — a publisher
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. file — a document
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. mark — a grade
  17. file — a tool
  18. root — of a plant
  19. pitch — completely
  20. root — of a word
  21. mark — a trace
  22. stock — goods
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. wound — an injury

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