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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. press — a publisher
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a hat
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pound — a weight
  15. rash — hasty
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. press — to push
  18. rash — a series
  19. cap — a lid
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. press — newspapers
  24. pitcher — a jug

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