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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: land · bay · stock · date · foot · press · march · fork

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. stock — shares
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. date — the fruit
  8. press — to push
  9. foot — a measure
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fork — in a road
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. land — to come down
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. press — newspapers
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. march — the month
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. press — a publisher
  21. stock — goods
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. land — ground
  24. land — a country

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