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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. sharp — clever
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. press — to push
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. press — newspapers
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. lean — thin
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. press — a publisher
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. row — a line
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. row — to paddle
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. mine — for digging
  24. shower — rain

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