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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cold — not warm
  4. chair — a leader
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. press — newspapers
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. stock — goods
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. lie — to recline
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. stock — shares
  22. press — a publisher
  23. rest — what's left
  24. press — to push

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