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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. press — newspapers
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. file — a document
  5. press — to push
  6. face — to confront
  7. file — a line of people
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. clip — for paper
  11. press — a publisher
  12. file — a tool
  13. game — a match
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. face — part of the head
  17. game — wild animals
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. chest — of your body
  22. band — a music group
  23. chest — a box
  24. band — a ring

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