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

Word bank: drill · press · race · pitcher · content · kid · stock · cap

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. kid — child
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. drill — army training
  7. cap — a lid
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — a contest
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. drill — a practice
  12. stock — shares
  13. content — the amount
  14. kid — to tease
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. drill — the tool
  18. stock — goods
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a hat
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. race — the arms race

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