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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. chip — to eat
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mark — a trace
  8. stock — goods
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stock — shares
  11. mine — for digging
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chip — for betting
  15. prune — to trim
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mark — a grade
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. press — newspapers

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