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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. press — to push
  3. cap — a hat
  4. face — to point toward
  5. spell — magic
  6. cell — a phone
  7. hand — in cards
  8. spell — a short time
  9. press — a publisher
  10. object — to protest
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cap — a lid
  13. press — newspapers
  14. branch — a division
  15. object — a thing
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. face — to confront
  19. object — an aim
  20. cap — of ice
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. cell — in biology
  23. spell — letters
  24. face — part of the head

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