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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wind — moving air
  5. content — happy
  6. charge — a price
  7. hand — help
  8. press — newspapers
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. ground — crushed
  12. wind — moving air
  13. press — to push
  14. charge — electricity
  15. hand — in cards
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. charge — in control
  18. deal — to handle
  19. content — the amount
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. ground — the earth
  24. snap — to click

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