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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. drill — a practice
  3. press — newspapers
  4. ground — the earth
  5. drill — army training
  6. bound — certain
  7. cold — not warm
  8. ground — a position
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bound — tied together
  11. ground — crushed
  12. drill — the tool
  13. row — a line
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. press — a publisher
  17. row — to paddle
  18. cold — an illness

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