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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. stand — to bear
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — to crush
  5. foot — a measure
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. press — a publisher
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. craft — a skill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. press — to push
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — the animal
  15. wound — an injury
  16. squash — the sport
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. press — newspapers
  20. craft — boats
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. jam — a tight spot

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