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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. root — of a word
  3. swing — in golf
  4. press — to push
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. tube — the underground
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. press — newspapers
  11. swing — to play on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. cold — not warm
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. swing — music
  16. plane — a tool
  17. tube — a container
  18. kid — child
  19. root — the cause
  20. root — of a plant
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. kid — to tease
  23. press — a publisher
  24. plane — an aircraft

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