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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. wake — a trail
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bore — to drill
  8. spell — letters
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — newspapers
  13. current — electric
  14. current — of water
  15. band — a music group
  16. spell — magic
  17. bore — to tire
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. pit — in a race
  22. current — happening now
  23. pit — a hole
  24. band — a ring

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