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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 120 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. root — of a plant
  3. press — a publisher
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. press — to push
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. scale — size or range
  8. root — of a word
  9. root — the cause
  10. sharp — clever
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. file — a line of people
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. scale — in music
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a document
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bark — to shout

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