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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. file — a document
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. mate — to breed
  5. wound — an injury
  6. mate — a partner
  7. key — in music
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. key — the most important part
  10. press — a publisher
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mate — a friend
  13. key — for a lock
  14. file — a tool
  15. present — the time now
  16. present — there
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. present — a gift
  20. press — to push
  21. file — a line of people
  22. pound — a weight
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wound — an injury

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