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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. march — the month
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bore — to tire
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. tear — from crying
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. fall — the season
  10. plane — a tool
  11. march — music
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. march — the month
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lean — thin
  19. press — to push
  20. press — newspapers
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lean — to bend
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. fall — to drop

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