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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. kid — child
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. cue — for pool
  7. band — a ring
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. rash — a series
  10. kid — to tease
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. cue — a hint
  13. stock — shares
  14. stand — to bear
  15. press — to push
  16. band — a music group
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. cue — a signal
  20. rash — hasty
  21. stock — goods
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. press — newspapers
  24. stand — on your feet

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