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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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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 sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. lean — thin
  3. net — after costs
  4. hand — help
  5. press — newspapers
  6. spring — of water
  7. press — a publisher
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spring — a coil
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. net — in sport
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. spring — the season
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. hand — in cards
  16. lean — to bend
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. toast — bread
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. net — for catching
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. press — to push

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