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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 ________________ the button?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. wind — moving air
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rule — government
  6. bound — certain
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — size or range
  9. press — newspapers
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bound — tied together
  12. tube — the underground
  13. chest — a box
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. chest — of your body
  16. mate — a partner
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — a law
  20. mate — to breed
  21. scale — in music
  22. bound — obliged
  23. mate — a friend
  24. tube — a container

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