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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. press — a publisher
  4. foot — a measure
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. land — ground
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. land — a country
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. cold — not warm
  19. deal — to handle
  20. land — to come down
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — to point toward
  23. chair — a leader
  24. press — to push

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