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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mate — a friend
  3. press — a publisher
  4. staff — employees
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. shower — to wash
  7. staff — a stick
  8. club — for dancing
  9. toast — bread
  10. date — the fruit
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — a safe
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. press — newspapers
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. mate — a partner
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. mate — to breed
  21. club — a group
  22. staff — employees
  23. club — for golf
  24. shower — rain

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