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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. cold — an illness
  3. file — a line of people
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. press — a publisher
  7. fall — to drop
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. fall — to drop
  11. file — a document
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. fall — the season
  14. press — newspapers
  15. object — an aim
  16. object — to protest
  17. file — a tool
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. plane — a tool
  23. cold — not warm
  24. object — a thing

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