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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. tear — from crying
  3. press — newspapers
  4. squash — to crush
  5. file — a line of people
  6. dip — to sink
  7. file — a document
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. file — a tool
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. perch — the fish
  12. tear — from crying
  13. press — a publisher
  14. tear — to rip
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. squash — the sport
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. board — to get on
  21. press — to push
  22. wound — an injury
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. perch — for a bird

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