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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cap — of ice
  3. march — the month
  4. staff — a stick
  5. cap — a hat
  6. content — happy
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. march — the month
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. press — newspapers
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — employees
  14. press — to push
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cap — a lid
  17. content — the amount
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pound — a weight
  23. march — music
  24. mine — belonging to me

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