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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. march — the month
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. press — to push
  8. ground — crushed
  9. branch — a division
  10. march — the month
  11. ground — a position
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. press — newspapers
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. wound — an injury
  17. press — a publisher
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wound — an injury
  21. ground — the earth
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. march — music

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