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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. file — a document
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. cell — a phone
  5. file — a line of people
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. lie — to recline
  9. file — a tool
  10. press — newspapers
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. tube — the underground
  13. shower — to wash
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. press — to push
  22. tube — a container
  23. cell — in biology
  24. fan — a supporter

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