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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. last — final
  3. roll — a cake
  4. squash — to crush
  5. press — a publisher
  6. squash — the sport
  7. hand — in cards
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. last — finally
  10. press — to push
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. chest — of your body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. chest — of your body
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. last — to go on
  21. chest — a box
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. roll — a list
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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