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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. file — a line of people
  4. degree — an amount
  5. file — a document
  6. degree — from a university
  7. snap — to click
  8. press — to push
  9. chip — for betting
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. degree — temperature
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. press — a publisher
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. press — newspapers
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. file — a tool
  23. chip — to eat
  24. vault — a safe

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