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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. cold — not warm
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. can — a tin
  5. cold — an illness
  6. march — the month
  7. vault — a safe
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. press — a publisher
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. march — music
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. march — the month
  18. game — a match
  19. can — a tin
  20. press — to push
  21. can — to be able to
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. press — newspapers

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