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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. race — a contest
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. degree — temperature
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. tear — to rip
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. race — the arms race
  14. tear — from crying
  15. press — to push
  16. press — a publisher
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a leader
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rush — hurry
  21. degree — an amount
  22. sharp — clever
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. race — humankind

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