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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. content — the amount
  4. wound — an injury
  5. press — newspapers
  6. press — to push
  7. suit — clothes
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. capital — money
  10. sharp — clever
  11. suit — to fit
  12. wound — an injury
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. hand — help
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. suit — in cards
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bat — the animal
  22. capital — a city
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. content — happy

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