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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  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. lean — thin
  3. bass — the fish
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a line
  6. bass — low music
  7. present — a gift
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. rest — a break
  11. present — there
  12. lean — to bend
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. rest — what's left
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. press — to push
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. capital — money
  20. rest — what's left
  21. present — the time now
  22. capital — a city
  23. dip — to sink
  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