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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. lean — thin
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a hat
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. cap — a lid
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wound — an injury
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. press — newspapers
  22. lean — to bend
  23. coach — a trainer
  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