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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. press — to push
  3. press — a publisher
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rest — what's left
  10. squash — to crush
  11. pit — a hole
  12. pit — in a race
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. foot — a measure
  15. content — happy
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. cold — an illness
  18. press — newspapers
  19. squash — the sport
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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