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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. degree — from a university
  3. plane — a tool
  4. degree — an amount
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. tear — from crying
  9. press — newspapers
  10. degree — temperature
  11. object — a thing
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wound — an injury
  14. object — to protest
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. stock — goods
  17. object — an aim
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — shares
  22. press — a publisher
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bore — to drill

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