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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. fall — the season
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. mate — to breed
  5. saw — the tool
  6. press — a publisher
  7. date — the fruit
  8. mate — a partner
  9. stand — to bear
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. saw — the tool
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. press — to push
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. press — newspapers
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. kick — in football

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