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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. tear — to rip
  3. press — to push
  4. capital — money
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. game — wild animals
  7. object — an aim
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mug — to rob
  10. object — to protest
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. mug — a face
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mug — a cup
  18. game — a match
  19. capital — a city
  20. object — a thing
  21. rush — hurry
  22. cap — of ice
  23. press — newspapers
  24. cap — a hat

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