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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. net — after costs
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — letters
  7. press — a publisher
  8. mug — a face
  9. spell — a short time
  10. mug — to rob
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. net — in sport
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. press — newspapers
  16. season — of the year
  17. fine — all right
  18. mug — a cup
  19. season — in sport
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. press — to push
  22. net — for catching
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — to come from

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