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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. staff — a stick
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. bass — the fish
  5. press — to push
  6. cold — not warm
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. staff — employees
  10. mark — a grade
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. press — a publisher
  13. staff — employees
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bass — low music
  17. shower — rain
  18. cold — an illness
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. board — a committee
  21. mark — a trace
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. board — to get on
  24. cold — the Cold War

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