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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. degree — temperature
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. mug — to rob
  5. content — the amount
  6. mug — a cup
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rash — a series
  9. wake — a trail
  10. content — happy
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. chest — a box
  15. mug — a face
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. press — a publisher
  23. rash — hasty
  24. press — newspapers

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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