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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. spell — magic
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. press — to push
  5. saw — the tool
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. row — a line
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bat — the animal
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. spell — a short time
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. spell — letters
  18. cabinet — a cupboard

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