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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 · drill · ball · patient · straw · wound · current · stock

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. drill — the tool
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. current — of water
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. drill — a practice
  11. wound — an injury
  12. ball — a great time
  13. current — electric
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. stock — goods
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. stock — shares
  19. current — happening now
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. drill — army training
  22. press — newspapers
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. ball — a dance

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