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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. shower — rain
  3. last — final
  4. press — a publisher
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bound — tied together
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. object — to protest
  10. last — to go on
  11. present — the time now
  12. press — newspapers
  13. stem — to come from
  14. shower — to wash
  15. present — there
  16. press — to push
  17. present — a gift
  18. last — finally
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — certain
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — an aim
  23. wound — an injury
  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