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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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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. mate — to breed
  4. press — newspapers
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. snap — to click
  8. cold — an illness
  9. charge — a price
  10. mate — a partner
  11. branch — a division
  12. bound — tied together
  13. press — to push
  14. scale — size or range
  15. charge — electricity
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bound — obliged
  18. press — a publisher
  19. scale — in music
  20. bound — certain
  21. charge — in control
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. mate — a friend

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