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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: stock · press · firm · rest · wake · mate · chair · pass

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. rest — a break
  3. mate — a friend
  4. stock — goods
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. press — to push
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. pass — a permit
  10. wake — a trail
  11. press — a publisher
  12. chair — a leader
  13. mate — a partner
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stock — shares
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. firm — decided
  19. press — newspapers
  20. mate — to breed
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. rest — what's left
  24. firm — a company

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