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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. face — to confront
  3. press — to push
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. chest — of your body
  6. face — to point toward
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. chest — a box
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. season — in sport
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. saw — the tool
  16. kick — in football
  17. press — a publisher
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. chest — of your body
  20. press — newspapers
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. face — part of the head

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