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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. press — newspapers
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. rash — a series
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bulb — for light
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. stem — to come from
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a tool
  14. snap — to click
  15. rash — hasty
  16. track — a song
  17. track — a path
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. track — to keep track
  22. press — a publisher
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bulb — for light

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