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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. kid — to tease
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. press — a publisher
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. press — newspapers
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. press — to push
  14. fork — in a road
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. snap — to click
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. plane — a tool
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. band — a rubber band

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