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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. present — the time now
  3. press — a publisher
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. press — newspapers
  6. mine — for digging
  7. face — to confront
  8. march — the month
  9. rush — hurry
  10. present — a gift
  11. present — there
  12. press — to push
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pound — a weight
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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