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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rush — hurry
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rest — a break
  9. band — a ring
  10. press — newspapers
  11. degree — temperature
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. band — a music group
  14. press — to push
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. degree — from a university
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. wound — an injury
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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