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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · deal · press · chest · wave · bowl

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. degree — temperature
  5. chest — of your body
  6. press — to push
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. chest — of your body
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. chest — a box
  12. deal — to handle
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. degree — an amount
  18. deal — a big deal

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