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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: press · degree · wave · stock · tear · current

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. stock — goods
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stock — shares
  7. current — electric
  8. press — newspapers
  9. degree — temperature
  10. tear — from crying
  11. press — a publisher
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. press — to push
  14. degree — an amount
  15. current — of water
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. degree — from a university
  18. current — happening now

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