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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. press — a publisher
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. shower — to wash
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. plane — a tool
  8. scale — size or range
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. scale — in music
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. squash — to crush
  17. ground — the earth
  18. press — to push
  19. press — newspapers
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. ground — a position
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. squash — the sport
  24. shower — rain

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