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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bound — obliged
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. spring — the season
  11. press — newspapers
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. staff — employees
  14. bound — tied together
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. degree — an amount
  18. press — to push
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. spring — of water
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. degree — from a university
  23. spring — a coil
  24. bound — certain

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