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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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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. chair — a leader
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mine — for digging
  5. press — newspapers
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wound — an injury
  11. press — a publisher
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stand — to bear
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. game — wild animals
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. game — a match
  21. press — to push
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. craft — a skill
  24. craft — boats

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