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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 120 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: spring · shower · stock · press · file · net · straw · temple

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. file — a tool
  3. shower — to wash
  4. net — in sport
  5. spring — of water
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. shower — rain
  9. spring — the season
  10. net — after costs
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. press — a publisher
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. press — to push
  16. file — a document
  17. net — for catching
  18. file — a line of people
  19. press — newspapers
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. spring — a coil

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