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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. row — to paddle
  5. press — a publisher
  6. swing — music
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. face — to confront
  9. press — newspapers
  10. firm — decided
  11. face — to point toward
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. row — a line
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — to play on
  18. firm — a company
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. firm — steady
  24. face — part of the head

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