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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. stock — goods
  6. field — farmland
  7. squash — the sport
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. scale — in music
  10. field — for sport
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — a publisher
  14. mine — for digging
  15. squash — to crush
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. stock — shares
  20. field — a subject
  21. scale — size or range
  22. press — to push
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. mine — belonging to me

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