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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · chest · prune · press · key · file · object · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. object — to protest
  3. chest — a box
  4. file — a document
  5. mate — a partner
  6. chest — of your body
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. press — to push
  9. prune — to trim
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a friend
  12. press — a publisher
  13. stock — goods
  14. file — a tool
  15. chest — of your body
  16. object — a thing
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. object — an aim
  22. key — in music
  23. press — newspapers
  24. file — a line of people

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