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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. race — a contest
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cell — in biology
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cell — a phone
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. race — the arms race
  12. kid — to tease
  13. cue — a signal
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. press — a publisher
  16. kid — child
  17. tear — from crying
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. press — newspapers
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. branch — a division
  23. cue — a hint
  24. race — humankind

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