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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 116 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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. vault — a safe
  3. wound — an injury
  4. field — farmland
  5. row — to paddle
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. field — for sport
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. last — to go on
  11. press — to push
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. last — finally
  15. press — newspapers
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. field — a subject
  19. row — a line
  20. last — final
  21. wound — an injury
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. can — to be able to

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