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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. spell — a short time
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. press — a publisher
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. spell — letters
  12. tube — a container
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. spell — magic
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. row — a line
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. press — to push
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — newspapers
  23. tube — the underground
  24. pitch — completely

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