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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — a publisher
  3. face — part of the head
  4. net — after costs
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rest — a break
  7. cell — a phone
  8. key — for a lock
  9. press — to push
  10. net — in sport
  11. chip — to eat
  12. face — to point toward
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. face — to confront
  16. key — in music
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pop — soda
  19. chip — for betting
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pop — music
  22. net — for catching
  23. key — the most important part
  24. rest — what's left

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