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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 124 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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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. press — a publisher
  5. file — a document
  6. hand — help
  7. file — a line of people
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. file — a tool
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. spell — magic
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. hand — in cards
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. date — the fruit
  20. press — newspapers
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. spell — a short time
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. press — to push

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