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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kid — to tease
  3. can — a tin
  4. current — happening now
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. press — a publisher
  9. current — electric
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. current — of water
  12. press — newspapers
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. press — to push
  16. kid — child
  17. can — to be able to
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. can — a tin
  23. wound — an injury
  24. dip — to sink

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