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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 120 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. pop — to visit
  3. press — a publisher
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rest — what's left
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — to bear
  8. rest — a break
  9. cold — an illness
  10. rest — what's left
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. pop — music
  15. cold — not warm
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. court — of law
  20. court — for sport
  21. bark — to shout
  22. pop — soda
  23. court — of a king
  24. press — to push

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