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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. wound — an injury
  3. press — newspapers
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. press — a publisher
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. content — happy
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. press — to push
  11. object — to protest
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. deal — to handle
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. wound — an injury
  18. object — an aim
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. object — a thing
  24. fork — in a road

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