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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. squash — to crush
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. field — farmland
  10. press — to push
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. drill — army training
  13. shower — rain
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. press — a publisher
  19. squash — the sport
  20. field — for sport
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. field — a subject

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