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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: mate · plane · pound · press · cell · hand

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. press — a publisher
  3. hand — help
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — a phone
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mate — a friend
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. cell — in biology
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. plane — a tool
  15. hand — in cards
  16. mate — to breed
  17. pound — a weight
  18. plane — in geometry

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