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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. degree — from a university
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. march — the month
  5. press — to push
  6. march — the month
  7. wound — an injury
  8. march — music
  9. degree — an amount
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — a country
  12. land — ground
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — tied together
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bound — certain
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. wound — an injury
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. safe — out of danger

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