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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. snap — to click
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. rash — a series
  5. tear — from crying
  6. press — a publisher
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. press — to push
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. fall — to drop
  16. net — in sport
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. net — for catching
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. net — after costs

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