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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. mate — to breed
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. saw — the tool
  7. press — to push
  8. saw — the tool
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. kid — child
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mate — a partner
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. press — newspapers
  23. mate — a friend
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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