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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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Word bank
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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. file — a document
  4. game — wild animals
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. wound — an injury
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. wound — an injury
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. file — a line of people
  11. game — a match
  12. snap — to click
  13. mate — a friend
  14. press — a publisher
  15. mate — a partner
  16. fine — all right
  17. file — a tool
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. mate — to breed
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. fine — high quality
  22. press — newspapers
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. fine — a penalty

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