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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 120 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. scale — size or range
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — newspapers
  5. scale — in music
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — an aim
  8. can — a tin
  9. press — to push
  10. object — a thing
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. spell — letters
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. lean — thin
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. lean — to bend
  21. cold — an illness
  22. can — a tin
  23. spell — magic
  24. can — to be able to

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