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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. press — a publisher
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. degree — from a university
  6. shower — to wash
  7. stem — to come from
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. press — newspapers
  10. press — to push
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. kid — child
  13. degree — temperature
  14. shower — rain
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. degree — an amount
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. sharp — with an edge

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