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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 is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  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. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — not warm
  7. press — newspapers
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. press — to push
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. tear — to rip
  16. swing — in golf
  17. press — a publisher
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — in football
  20. swing — music
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. rush — hurry
  23. kick — a thrill
  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