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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 116 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. season — in sport
  3. file — a tool
  4. bank — of a river
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. last — finally
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — for money
  12. last — to go on
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — to paddle
  16. rush — hurry
  17. file — a document
  18. press — a publisher
  19. file — a line of people
  20. row — a line
  21. last — final
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. season — of the year
  24. rush — a thrill

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