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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: bark · wake · fine · file · rush · mine · stock · press

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. stock — goods
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. fine — high quality
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fine — all right
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. rush — hurry
  10. file — a tool
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. stock — shares
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. mine — for digging
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. press — to push
  19. press — a publisher
  20. file — a document
  21. press — newspapers
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bark — to shout

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