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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. lean — thin
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. pop — music
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. press — to push
  9. press — newspapers
  10. march — the month
  11. pop — soda
  12. craft — boats
  13. march — the month
  14. lean — to bend
  15. spring — of water
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. spring — the season
  18. march — music
  19. pop — to visit
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. craft — a skill
  22. spring — a coil
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. lean — to rest against

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