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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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pop — soda
  4. lean — to bend
  5. press — a publisher
  6. wound — an injury
  7. field — for sport
  8. pop — to visit
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. press — to push
  11. field — farmland
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. rest — a break
  14. chip — to eat
  15. field — a subject
  16. pop — music
  17. lean — thin
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. staff — employees
  21. rest — what's left
  22. press — newspapers
  23. staff — a stick
  24. rest — what's left

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