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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. hand — help
  3. press — newspapers
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. track — to keep track
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. track — a path
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wound — an injury
  10. track — a song
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. press — a publisher
  15. wound — an injury
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wake — before a funeral

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