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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. field — farmland
  3. last — finally
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. can — a tin
  6. pop — to visit
  7. tear — from crying
  8. press — newspapers
  9. cap — a hat
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. tear — from crying
  13. field — a subject
  14. last — final
  15. plane — a tool
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cap — a lid
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cap — of ice
  20. field — for sport
  21. pop — music
  22. last — to go on
  23. pop — soda
  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