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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. file — a line of people
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. press — to push
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. file — a tool
  8. chair — a leader
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. can — to be able to
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. can — a tin
  14. file — a document
  15. press — newspapers
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — a series
  22. kick — in football
  23. press — a publisher
  24. can — a tin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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