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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. fine — high quality
  3. press — a publisher
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. sharp — clever
  8. press — to push
  9. fine — all right
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. net — in sport
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. pound — a weight
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. press — newspapers
  18. lean — thin
  19. file — a tool
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. lean — to bend
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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