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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. ball — a great time
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. press — a publisher
  8. face — to point toward
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. snap — to click
  14. face — to confront
  15. ball — a dance
  16. press — newspapers
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. press — to push
  23. shower — rain
  24. band — a ring

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