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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. tear — to rip
  3. can — to be able to
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. press — a publisher
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lean — to bend
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. can — a tin
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. snap — to click
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lean — thin
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. can — a tin
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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