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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. key — the most important part
  3. press — a publisher
  4. stand — to bear
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. snap — to click
  8. content — happy
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. press — to push
  17. key — in music
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. key — for a lock
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. press — newspapers
  24. calf — a young animal

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