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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 124 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. press — a publisher
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. chip — for betting
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. chip — to eat
  13. present — there
  14. fall — the season
  15. fall — to drop
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. scale — in music
  20. press — to push
  21. present — the time now
  22. scale — size or range
  23. press — newspapers
  24. fan — a supporter

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