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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. object — to protest
  3. press — a publisher
  4. field — for sport
  5. mine — for digging
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. stand — to bear
  14. press — newspapers
  15. object — a thing
  16. press — to push
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. field — a subject
  19. chair — a leader
  20. object — an aim
  21. field — farmland
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. leaves — of a tree

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