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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 broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. cold — an illness
  5. game — a match
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. press — to push
  10. root — the cause
  11. cold — not warm
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. current — happening now
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — of a plant
  18. current — electric
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. current — of water
  23. game — wild animals
  24. leaves — of a tree

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