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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 120 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. press — to push
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kid — to tease
  6. saw — the tool
  7. last — finally
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. kid — child
  11. last — final
  12. saw — the tool
  13. press — a publisher
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. press — newspapers
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. last — to go on
  18. kick — in football
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. deal — to handle
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. arm — a part of something

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