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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mark — a trace
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. press — newspapers
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. content — the amount
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. wake — a trail
  19. press — a publisher
  20. press — to push
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mark — a grade
  23. fork — in a road
  24. content — happy

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