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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cold — not warm
  3. rest — what's left
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — an illness
  6. press — to push
  7. march — the month
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. board — to get on
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. march — music
  15. rest — a break
  16. press — newspapers
  17. board — a committee
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. march — the month
  21. rest — what's left
  22. branch — a division
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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