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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. mug — to rob
  3. press — to push
  4. scale — in music
  5. pop — music
  6. cold — not warm
  7. scale — size or range
  8. press — newspapers
  9. shower — rain
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — to visit
  13. track — a path
  14. press — a publisher
  15. shower — to wash
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. track — to keep track
  19. mug — a face
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. track — a song
  22. mug — a cup
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. sharp — exactly

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