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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. press — newspapers
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. row — a line
  7. degree — an amount
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. degree — from a university
  10. mate — a partner
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. mate — a friend
  13. sharp — clever
  14. mate — to breed
  15. race — a contest
  16. press — to push
  17. race — the arms race
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. row — to paddle
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. fork — in a road
  23. race — humankind
  24. degree — temperature

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