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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. firm — a company
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. band — a ring
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. press — a publisher
  8. firm — decided
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. press — to push
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. firm — steady
  13. net — after costs
  14. foot — a measure
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. press — newspapers
  19. cell — a phone
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. band — a music group
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. net — for catching

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