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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. present — there
  3. mug — a cup
  4. spring — a coil
  5. present — the time now
  6. spring — of water
  7. face — to point toward
  8. mug — a face
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. present — a gift
  12. press — to push
  13. club — a group
  14. suit — in cards
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mug — to rob
  17. chair — a leader
  18. press — newspapers
  19. face — part of the head
  20. press — a publisher
  21. suit — to fit
  22. suit — clothes
  23. club — for golf
  24. spring — the season

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