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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. rest — what's left
  3. press — a publisher
  4. snap — to click
  5. press — to push
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. field — for sport
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. field — a subject
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. rest — what's left
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. field — farmland
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. pound — a weight
  20. rest — a break
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. press — newspapers
  24. coach — a trainer

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