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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. key — the most important part
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — to come from
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. file — a document
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a tool
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. press — to push
  14. key — in music
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. saw — the tool
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. press — newspapers
  23. key — for a lock
  24. temple — side 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