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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. last — finally
  3. stock — shares
  4. track — to keep track
  5. press — a publisher
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. track — a path
  8. toast — bread
  9. bank — of a river
  10. last — to go on
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. stock — goods
  13. track — a song
  14. press — to push
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. last — final
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. bank — for money
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bank — for money
  23. press — newspapers
  24. mine — for digging

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