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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 124 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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. press — a publisher
  12. hand — in cards
  13. squash — to crush
  14. last — final
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. foot — a measure
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — to push
  23. squash — the sport
  24. bowl — a football final

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