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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 116 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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. cell — a phone
  3. rest — a break
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. rest — what's left
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rest — what's left
  8. field — for sport
  9. cell — in biology
  10. field — farmland
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. lie — to recline
  13. press — a publisher
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. field — a subject
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. press — to push

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