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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: roll · foot · stock · bear · race · press · march · scale

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. press — to push
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stock — shares
  8. march — music
  9. stock — goods
  10. roll — a cake
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. march — the month
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. press — newspapers
  18. race — humankind
  19. press — a publisher
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. scale — size or range
  22. roll — a list
  23. scale — in music
  24. march — the month

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