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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. press — a publisher
  3. row — a line
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. press — to push
  6. rest — what's left
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rest — a break
  13. field — a subject
  14. game — a match
  15. drill — a practice
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. game — wild animals
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. rest — what's left
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. press — newspapers
  24. calf — a young animal

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