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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. object — to protest
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bank — for money
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. deal — to handle
  8. press — to push
  9. object — a thing
  10. object — an aim
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. ground — a position
  14. stem — to come from
  15. last — to go on
  16. content — happy
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. content — the amount
  19. last — finally
  20. bank — of a river
  21. last — final
  22. press — newspapers
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bank — for money

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