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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. press — to push
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. can — a tin
  7. cold — not warm
  8. can — to be able to
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. land — a country
  11. press — newspapers
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — ground
  16. mark — a trace
  17. cold — an illness
  18. press — a publisher
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mark — a grade
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. can — a tin
  24. hide — animal skin

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