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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. press — to push
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. cold — not warm
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. press — a publisher
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. press — newspapers
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. can — to be able to
  20. rush — hurry
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. chair — a leader
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stand — to bear

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