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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. press — a publisher
  3. cell — in biology
  4. shower — rain
  5. object — a thing
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pass — a permit
  9. bound — certain
  10. chest — a box
  11. shower — to wash
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. cell — a phone
  14. press — to push
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. object — an aim
  19. bound — tied together
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. chest — of your body
  22. press — newspapers
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. chest — of your body

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