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

Word bank: cell · staff · press · fork · wound · wave

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. cell — a phone
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. press — to push
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. press — newspapers
  12. staff — a stick
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. staff — employees
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cell — in biology
  18. press — a publisher

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