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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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Word bank
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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. spring — the season
  4. face — to point toward
  5. spring — a coil
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. spring — of water
  8. face — to confront
  9. pit — a hole
  10. press — newspapers
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. rash — hasty
  13. dip — to sink
  14. pit — in a race
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. face — part of the head
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. rash — a series
  22. press — a publisher
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. press — to push

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