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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. staff — employees
  3. press — newspapers
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — to crush
  6. key — in music
  7. press — to push
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — a gift
  10. press — a publisher
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. spring — a coil
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. staff — employees
  15. squash — the sport
  16. shower — rain
  17. staff — a stick
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. key — for a lock
  20. spring — the season
  21. key — the most important part
  22. date — the fruit
  23. present — there
  24. shower — to wash

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