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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: foot · saw · rash · bass · stock · press · mine · field

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. field — a subject
  3. press — to push
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bass — low music
  9. mine — for digging
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. foot — a measure
  13. rash — hasty
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bass — the fish
  16. rash — a series
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. field — farmland
  19. stock — goods
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. stock — shares
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. field — for sport
  24. bass — the instrument

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