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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. chair — a leader
  4. face — part of the head
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. tube — a container
  7. race — the arms race
  8. press — to push
  9. face — to confront
  10. current — electric
  11. press — a publisher
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. press — newspapers
  14. mate — a friend
  15. tube — the underground
  16. face — to point toward
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. race — humankind
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. current — of water
  22. current — happening now
  23. race — a contest
  24. mate — to breed

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