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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 116 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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mate — to breed
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. press — to push
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. land — to come down
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. land — ground
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bank — for money
  12. press — newspapers
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — a short time
  16. bank — of a river
  17. bank — for money
  18. spell — letters
  19. land — a country
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. wound — an injury
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. fork — in a road

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