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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wound — an injury
  3. face — to confront
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. press — to push
  7. saw — the tool
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. charge — a price
  11. press — newspapers
  12. face — to point toward
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a document
  15. charge — in control
  16. wound — an injury
  17. press — a publisher
  18. saw — the tool
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. file — a line of people
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. nail — for a hammer

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