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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 · deal · face · stock · sharp · bulb · field · file

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. press — to push
  3. field — for sport
  4. sharp — clever
  5. file — a document
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. face — to confront
  8. stock — shares
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — part of the head
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. press — a publisher
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. field — a subject
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. field — farmland
  19. deal — to handle
  20. press — newspapers
  21. file — a line of people
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bulb — for light
  24. file — a tool

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