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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. game — a match
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. press — newspapers
  6. bear — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. rest — what's left
  9. chair — a leader
  10. game — wild animals
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. rest — a break
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bear — the animal
  21. press — a publisher
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pound — to hit hard
  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