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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. capital — money
  5. row — a line
  6. chip — for betting
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. stock — shares
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. chip — to eat
  14. row — to paddle
  15. kick — in football
  16. stock — goods
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. saw — the tool
  19. capital — a city
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. kick — with a leg

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