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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. cell — in biology
  3. press — a publisher
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. degree — from a university
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. cell — a phone
  14. degree — an amount
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. press — to push
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. chip — for betting
  20. press — newspapers
  21. chip — to eat
  22. branch — a division
  23. degree — temperature
  24. cell — in a prison

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