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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — a publisher
  3. club — for golf
  4. cap — of ice
  5. club — a group
  6. present — there
  7. cap — a hat
  8. chest — of your body
  9. club — for dancing
  10. face — part of the head
  11. chest — a box
  12. face — to confront
  13. present — a gift
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. kick — in football
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. face — to point toward
  19. cap — a lid
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. press — to push
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. present — the time now

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