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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. perch — the fish
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pass — a permit
  7. cell — a phone
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. row — to paddle
  11. press — to push
  12. press — newspapers
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cell — in biology
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cap — of ice
  18. dip — to sink
  19. row — a line
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. game — a match
  22. press — a publisher
  23. cap — a hat
  24. row — a quarrel

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