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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — farmland
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. field — a subject
  6. cell — in biology
  7. field — for sport
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. press — to push
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bass — the fish
  12. mark — a trace
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bass — low music
  16. cell — a phone
  17. dip — to sink
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. mark — a grade
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — an injury

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