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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — to push
  3. present — a gift
  4. press — a publisher
  5. tear — from crying
  6. squash — the sport
  7. net — in sport
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. net — after costs
  14. present — there
  15. squash — to crush
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. tear — from crying
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. tear — to rip
  21. net — for catching
  22. present — the time now
  23. plane — a tool
  24. cabinet — ministers

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