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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. file — a tool
  4. last — to go on
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. row — to paddle
  7. press — newspapers
  8. staff — employees
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. press — to push
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. shower — to wash
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. press — a publisher
  16. kid — child
  17. staff — employees
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. shower — rain
  22. row — a line
  23. last — finally
  24. kid — to tease

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