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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. press — a publisher
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. rash — hasty
  11. press — newspapers
  12. deal — to handle
  13. kick — in football
  14. squash — to crush
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. rash — a series
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bear — the animal
  20. wake — a trail
  21. press — to push
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bear — the animal
  24. deal — an agreement

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