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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. cap — of ice
  3. kick — in football
  4. press — to push
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. stem — to come from
  7. wound — an injury
  8. chest — of your body
  9. press — newspapers
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. cap — a hat
  17. chest — a box
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. press — a publisher
  22. cap — a lid
  23. vault — a safe
  24. kick — with a leg

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