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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 120 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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. press — newspapers
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — in sport
  5. press — a publisher
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. spell — a short time
  9. tube — the underground
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. net — for catching
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. spell — letters
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spell — magic
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cell — a phone
  22. tube — a container
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. press — to push

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