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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. stock — goods
  3. last — to go on
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. press — a publisher
  6. kick — in football
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. press — to push
  9. stock — shares
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. last — finally
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. tear — to rip
  19. press — newspapers
  20. dip — to sink
  21. last — final
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. kick — with a leg

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