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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. shower — to wash
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. pop — to visit
  5. rest — what's left
  6. club — for golf
  7. kid — child
  8. press — a publisher
  9. kid — to tease
  10. saw — the tool
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. pop — music
  13. rest — what's left
  14. club — for dancing
  15. pop — soda
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. shower — rain
  20. club — a group
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — to push
  24. rest — a break

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