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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 lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. tube — the underground
  3. field — a subject
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tube — a container
  11. field — farmland
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. roll — a list
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. press — to push
  17. rest — a break
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. rest — what's left
  22. press — newspapers
  23. roll — a cake
  24. field — for sport

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