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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. charge — a price
  4. mine — for digging
  5. charge — electricity
  6. press — a publisher
  7. rule — government
  8. face — to confront
  9. rule — a law
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. charge — in control
  14. press — to push
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. swing — music
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. press — newspapers
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to point toward

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