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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. object — to protest
  3. press — to push
  4. fall — to drop
  5. current — happening now
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. pop — to visit
  8. bat — the animal
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. fall — the season
  11. stem — to come from
  12. current — electric
  13. press — newspapers
  14. sharp — clever
  15. pop — music
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. press — a publisher
  18. object — a thing
  19. current — of water
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pop — soda
  23. object — an aim
  24. bat — for baseball

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