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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. press — a publisher
  4. cue — for pool
  5. press — to push
  6. content — happy
  7. root — of a word
  8. content — the amount
  9. wake — a trail
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. root — of a plant
  15. perch — the fish
  16. cue — a hint
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. press — newspapers
  19. root — the cause
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. chest — a box
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cue — a signal
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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