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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. spell — magic
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. press — to push
  7. file — a line of people
  8. spell — a short time
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pound — a weight
  11. roll — a cake
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. tear — from crying
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a document
  16. fine — all right
  17. spell — letters
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fine — high quality
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. press — newspapers

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