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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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Word bank
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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: chair · wake · row · hide · ruler · press

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. row — a line
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. press — newspapers
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. press — a publisher
  16. wake — a trail
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wake — before a funeral

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