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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. chest — a box
  3. press — to push
  4. spell — magic
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. bat — the animal
  7. chest — of your body
  8. spell — letters
  9. chest — of your body
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. spell — a short time
  13. press — newspapers
  14. dip — to sink
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. saw — the tool
  22. press — a publisher
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cabinet — ministers

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