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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: press · roll · stock · race · file · fork · field · bulb

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. bulb — for light
  3. race — the arms race
  4. roll — a cake
  5. press — to push
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. press — a publisher
  9. file — a tool
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. file — a document
  14. field — for sport
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stock — goods
  17. race — a contest
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bulb — for light
  20. race — humankind
  21. fork — in a road
  22. press — newspapers
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. fork — to eat with

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