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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. pound — a weight
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. press — a publisher
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. current — happening now
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. foot — a measure
  11. squash — the sport
  12. current — of water
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. current — electric
  15. degree — from a university
  16. press — newspapers
  17. degree — temperature
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. spell — letters
  20. bark — to shout
  21. degree — an amount
  22. spell — magic
  23. press — to push
  24. spell — a short time

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