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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. press — a publisher
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. pop — soda
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. pop — to visit
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — in music
  12. ball — a dance
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. stock — shares
  16. ball — a great time
  17. press — to push
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. branch — a division
  23. press — newspapers
  24. pop — music

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