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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. fall — the season
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. fall — to drop
  6. file — a line of people
  7. present — there
  8. fall — to drop
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — newspapers
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. press — to push
  13. mate — a friend
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. mate — to breed
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a document
  18. present — the time now
  19. lean — thin
  20. saw — the tool
  21. present — a gift
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. saw — the tool
  24. lean — to bend

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