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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. field — for sport
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. perch — the fish
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. press — to push
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. sharp — clever
  13. squash — to crush
  14. charge — a price
  15. charge — electricity
  16. field — a subject
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. field — farmland
  21. charge — in control
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. press — newspapers

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