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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cell — a phone
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bat — the animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. chair — a leader
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. bore — to drill
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. press — a publisher
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. press — newspapers
  15. cell — in biology
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. bore — to tire
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. press — to push
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. dip — to sink

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