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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. press — to push
  3. tear — to rip
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. press — newspapers
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chest — a box
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. net — in sport
  10. press — a publisher
  11. tear — from crying
  12. foot — a measure
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. degree — from a university
  24. chest — of your body

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