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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. chest — a box
  3. file — a document
  4. perch — the fish
  5. present — a gift
  6. track — a song
  7. track — to keep track
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. wound — an injury
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chest — of your body
  15. press — a publisher
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. track — a path
  18. press — to push
  19. chest — of your body
  20. press — newspapers
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. file — a tool
  23. present — there
  24. present — the time now

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