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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. squash — the sport
  8. chair — a leader
  9. press — to push
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cell — a phone
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. squash — to crush
  14. press — newspapers
  15. wake — a trail
  16. can — a tin
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. mate — to breed
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. can — to be able to
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mate — a friend
  24. can — a tin

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