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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  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. lash — to lash out
  2. press — a publisher
  3. sharp — clever
  4. press — to push
  5. wound — an injury
  6. press — newspapers
  7. tear — from crying
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. field — a subject
  10. saw — the tool
  11. field — farmland
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wound — an injury
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. tear — from crying
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. tear — to rip
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. vault — a safe
  23. saw — the tool
  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