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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — newspapers
  3. key — the most important part
  4. stem — to come from
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. lean — thin
  9. cell — in biology
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. squash — to crush
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. content — the amount
  16. cell — a phone
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — in music
  19. press — a publisher
  20. squash — the sport
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. mine — belonging to me

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