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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. craft — boats
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. tube — a container
  5. row — a line
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. tube — the underground
  9. row — to paddle
  10. board — a committee
  11. press — a publisher
  12. snap — to click
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. board — to get on
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. fork — in a road
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. craft — a skill
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. press — newspapers

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