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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. face — part of the head
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — certain
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. press — a publisher
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bound — tied together
  13. press — newspapers
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — of water
  16. face — to confront
  17. face — to point toward
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bank — for money
  20. cold — not warm
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. jam — a tight spot

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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