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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. press — newspapers
  3. toast — bread
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. club — a group
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — to crush
  10. press — a publisher
  11. squash — the sport
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. cold — an illness
  18. press — to push
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cold — not warm
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. club — for golf
  24. roll — a list

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