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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. press — to push
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cold — an illness
  10. scale — in music
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. chest — a box
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. chest — of your body
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. hand — help
  24. press — a publisher

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