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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. fall — to drop
  3. press — to push
  4. tear — to rip
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. cell — a phone
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. press — newspapers
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. press — a publisher
  13. tear — from crying
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. tear — from crying
  19. game — wild animals
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cell — in biology
  22. game — a match
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fall — the season

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