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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — to push
  3. content — happy
  4. squash — to crush
  5. present — the time now
  6. wind — moving air
  7. present — there
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wind — moving air
  12. squash — the sport
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ball — a dance
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ball — a great time
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. press — a publisher
  21. present — a gift
  22. content — the amount
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. bat — the animal

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