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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 120 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. press — newspapers
  4. stem — to come from
  5. press — a publisher
  6. cold — not warm
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. bank — of a river
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — to tease
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bank — for money
  14. snap — to click
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. press — to push
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bank — for money
  20. cold — an illness
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. content — happy
  23. kid — child
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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