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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kid — child
  4. snap — to click
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. press — to push
  7. net — for catching
  8. net — in sport
  9. rest — a break
  10. net — after costs
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rest — what's left
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tear — from crying
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. press — a publisher
  23. tear — to rip
  24. bowl — a dish

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