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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. key — in music
  4. press — a publisher
  5. vault — a safe
  6. saw — the tool
  7. roll — a cake
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. press — newspapers
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. saw — the tool
  13. roll — a list
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. chair — a leader
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. press — to push
  20. cell — in biology
  21. key — for a lock
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cell — a phone

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