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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. press — to push
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. cold — not warm
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. foot — a measure
  13. fine — all right
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. press — newspapers
  17. key — the most important part
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. press — a publisher
  20. chest — of your body
  21. key — in music
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. key — for a lock
  24. pitcher — a jug

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