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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cell — in biology
  3. press — newspapers
  4. press — to push
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mug — a cup
  8. content — the amount
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bark — to shout
  12. content — happy
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. ground — the earth
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. ground — crushed
  18. mug — to rob
  19. row — a line
  20. chair — a leader
  21. mug — a face
  22. ground — a position
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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