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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. face — to point toward
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. press — a publisher
  5. hand — in cards
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. press — to push
  8. chair — a leader
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. cell — a phone
  12. face — to confront
  13. hand — help
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rash — a series
  19. cell — in biology
  20. press — newspapers
  21. face — part of the head
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. suit — to fit

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