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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. cold — an illness
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. kick — in football
  7. press — to push
  8. dip — to sink
  9. press — a publisher
  10. object — to protest
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. object — an aim
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pound — a weight
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. object — a thing
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. cold — not warm

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