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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. degree — an amount
  3. ground — the earth
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. ground — a position
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. press — to push
  9. stock — shares
  10. snap — to click
  11. press — newspapers
  12. degree — temperature
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. perch — the fish
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. stock — goods
  23. degree — from a university
  24. perch — for a bird

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