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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. press — newspapers
  6. present — there
  7. ground — a position
  8. press — a publisher
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. press — to push
  11. perch — the fish
  12. ground — crushed
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. ground — the earth
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. cell — a phone
  21. fork — in a road
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. cell — in biology

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