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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. craft — boats
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. wound — an injury
  9. face — part of the head
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. bear — the animal
  17. craft — a skill
  18. bear — the animal
  19. face — to point toward
  20. staff — employees
  21. face — to confront
  22. wound — an injury
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. bat — for baseball

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