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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. press — a publisher
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. march — the month
  9. scale — size or range
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. wake — a trail
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. kick — in football
  15. deal — to handle
  16. march — music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. snap — to click
  20. press — to push
  21. mine — for digging
  22. scale — in music
  23. march — the month
  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