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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. file — a document
  4. suit — to fit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. suit — clothes
  7. field — for sport
  8. shower — rain
  9. press — to push
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. row — a line
  12. file — a tool
  13. press — newspapers
  14. land — a country
  15. lean — thin
  16. field — a subject
  17. file — a line of people
  18. land — ground
  19. lean — to bend
  20. press — a publisher
  21. field — farmland
  22. row — to paddle
  23. suit — in cards
  24. land — to come down

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