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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. march — music
  3. cap — of ice
  4. press — to push
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — a hat
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. march — the month
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. degree — from a university
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — temperature
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. degree — an amount
  17. press — newspapers
  18. scale — in music

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