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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. press — a publisher
  3. snap — to click
  4. press — newspapers
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. press — to push
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. cue — a hint
  10. mark — a trace
  11. last — finally
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. last — final
  14. hand — in cards
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. last — to go on
  17. cue — a signal
  18. stock — goods
  19. cue — for pool
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. mark — a grade
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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