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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a grade
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. roll — a cake
  7. foot — a measure
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. press — a publisher
  11. mark — a trace
  12. tube — a container
  13. roll — a list
  14. cold — an illness
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. cold — not warm
  20. tube — the underground
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. press — to push
  24. press — newspapers

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