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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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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  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. wound — an injury
  2. cell — in biology
  3. spring — the season
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. drill — army training
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fork — in a road
  8. perch — the fish
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. drill — the tool
  11. spring — a coil
  12. cell — a phone
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. race — humankind
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. spring — of water
  17. race — a contest
  18. wound — an injury
  19. press — a publisher
  20. race — the arms race
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. press — to push
  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