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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. press — to push
  3. clip — for paper
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. stem — to come from
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. press — newspapers
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. stem — of a plant

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